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Brief  H  istory 


OF 


ROME 


ROMAN    WOMEN     SUPPLICATING    THE    tiODS     lO    SAVE    THE     IMPERjAl-   CITV 
FROM    HANNIBAL,       (See  page  160.) 


BARNES'     ONE-TERM     SERIES 


Brief  History 


ROME 


JOEL     DORMAN     STEELE 

AND 

ESTHER     B.     STEELE 


SELECT  READINGS  FROM  STANDARD  AUTHORS 


NEW  YORK 
CHAUTAUQUA     PRESS 

C.  L.  S.  C.   DEPARTMENT 


The  required  books  of  the  C.  L.  S.  C.  are  reeommended 
by  a  Council  of  six.  I^  must,  however,  be  understood  that 
recommendation  does  not  involve  an  approval  by  the 
Council,  or  by  any  member  of  it,  of  every  principle  or  doe- 
trine  contained  in  the  book  recommended. 


Copyright,  1885,  by  A.  S.  Barnes  &  Co. 


Copyright,  1885,  by  Phillips  &  Hunt,  805  Broadway,  New  York. 


SRLF 


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FKBPAeiE- 


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//is 


THE  first  part  of  this  book,  taken  from  the  Bkief 
History  of  Ancient  Peoples,  gives  a  resume  of 
Roman  history,  manners,  customs,  arts,  literature,  architect- 
ure, religion,  etc. 

In  accordance  with  the  modern  method  of  historical  teach- 
ing, the  political  portion  is  limited  to  the  important  events, 
that  room  may  be  made  for  some  account  of  the  life  of  the 
people. 

The  divisions  on  Civilization  and  Manners  and  Customs 
are  l^y  Mrs.  J.  Dorman  Steele.  Their  aim  is  to  give  prom- 
inence to  the  fact  tliat  the  people  of  history  were  men  and 
women  subject  to  the  same  liopes,  fears,  joys,  and  sufferings 
as  ourselves,  and  thus  to  sfudy  their  v.irious  fortunes  in  the 
spirit  of  human  sympathy,  ratlier  llian  of  statisticnl  infor- 
mation. 

The  Scenes  in  Real  Life  are  the  result  of  a  careful  study 
of  the  monuments  in  tlu-  London,  Paris,  and  Berlin  mu- 
seums,  of    the    ruins    in    Rome    mikI    Pomi»eii,  and   of   the 


VI  PREFACE. 

latest  authorities  on  the  domestic  life  of  the  peoples  of 
other  lands  and  times. 

The  second  part  of  this  book,  also  prepared  by  Mrs.  Steele, 
consists  of  readings,  carefully  selected  from  the  best  writers. 
The  guiding  thought  in  choosing  these  has  been,  first,  to 
impress  upon  the  mind  of  the  reader  a  few  of  the  most 
important  events  and  characters  in  Roman  history ;  and, 
second,  to  suggest  to  him  the  wide  range  of  literature 
bearing  upon  the  subject,  hoping  thus  to  beget  an  in- 
terest that  may  lead  to  a  familiarity  with  this  field  of 
thought. 

In  making  these  compilations  it  has  often  seemed  expe- 
dient to  combine  scattered  passages,  and  to  condense, 
interpolate,  or  modify  sentences  and  paragraphs,  in  order 
to  render  each  selection  complete  by  itself;  the  utmost 
care  lias  been  taken,  however,  to  preserve  each  author's 
peculiar  style  and  mode  of  expression. 


PART    I. 


PAGE 
13 


1.  Political  History  of  Eome 

Introduction 14 

Founding  of  Rome 15 

Sabine  Invasion  and  League 18 

Etruscan  Conquest 21 

The  Struggle  between  Patricians  and  Plebeians 23 

The  Gallic  Invasion 30 

The  War  with  Pyrrhus  34 

The  Punic  Wars 37 

The  Civil  Wars  51 

Imperial  Kome ...    65 

Spread  of  Christianity 73 

Invasion  of  the  Barbarians 75 

Fall  of  Rome 79 

2.  Civilization 80 

Society 80 

The  Army 81 

Arms  and  Mode  of  Warfare 82 

Literature ....  83 

Libraries  and  Writing  Material 88 

Ediu-atioii DO 

MonnmcntH  and  Art 91 

3.  Manneus  and  Customs  90 

General  Character 90 

Religion 97 

Games  and  Festivals 100 


Viii  CONTENTS. 

Marriage 103 

Burial 104 

Dress 105 

Scenes  in   Real  Life. — I.   A  Day  in  Rome.     II.  A  Roman 
Home.     III.   A   Triumphal    Procession.     IV.   The   last 

of  a  Roman  Emperor 106 

4.  Summary 118 

1.  Of  the  Political  History 118 

2.  Of  the  Civilization 119 

3.  Reading  References 120 

4.  Chronology 131 


PART    II. 

SELECT   HEADINGS   IN    EOMAN   HISTORY. 

1.  The  Origin  of  the  Romans. — Latin  Race,  Lan- 
guage, Society,  Tribal  Divisions,  Houses,  Cit- 
izenship, etc Arnold  123 

3.  Causes  op  Rome's  Early  Greatness 128 

1.  The  Campagna  and  the  Tiber Philip  Smith  128 

2.  The  Palatine  Hill,  the  Cradle  of  Rome Merimle  130 

3.  The  Seven  Hills,  and  the  Power  of  Political 

Confederacy Ihne  131 

4.  The  Rapid  Growth  of  the  Imperial  City Sheppard  134 

5.  Rome  the  Mistress  of  the  Mediterranean Sheppard  135 

3.  Roman  Ballads,  the    Source  op  Roman  Leg- 

endary History  . .  .Macaulay  136 

Battle  of  Lake  Regillus Macaulay  140 

4.  Period  op  the  Punic  Waks 145 

1.  Rome  in  the  Third  Century  B.  c Ihne  145 

S.  Hannibal 148 

1.  The  Genius  of  Hannibal Arnold  148 

2.  Hannibal  at  the  Gates  of  Rome Livy  149 

8.  Hasdrubal  at  the  Metaurus Arnold  153 


CONTENTS.  il 

FA.OB 

4.  A  Roman  Atonement,  a  Suspense   and   a 
Thanksgiving.       (Before   and   after   the 

battle  of  Metaurus) Ihne  157 

S.  Carthage Edinburgh  Review  160 

4.  Cato  the  Censor Plutarch  162 

5.  Sumptuary  Laws . .  .Ihne  164 

Debate    between    Cato   and    L.  Valerius  on 

the  Oppian  Law Livy  165 

Period  of  the  Civil  Wars 170 

1.  Rome  at  the  Opening  of  the  Civil  Wars 170 

1.  The  New  NobiUty Philip  Smith  170 

2.  Public  Improvements Philip  Smith  171 

5.  The  Gracchi Plutarch  172 

3.  Marius  and  Sulla Beesly  175 

4.  Julius  Caesar 177 

1.  The  Man Froude  177 

2.  The  Soldier Froude  178 

3.  The  Orator  and  Author Froude  179 

4.  Caesar's  Mission Froude  180 

6.  Pompey  the  Great Alfred  Church  181 

6.  The  First  Triumvirate Froude  184 

7.  Battle  of  Pharsalia \  ^^^^'^  \.   187 

8.  Caesar's  Death SMksperc  193 

9.  Antony,  Octavius,  and  Cicero ]  £''"^/*  [    197 

10.  End  of  Cato  the  Stoic Church  205 

//.  Comparison  of  Cato  and  Caesar Sullust  208 

The  Augustax  Age 209 

1.  Rome  under  Augustus. Edinburgh  Reviexc  209 

2.  The  Personal  Augustus Merivnlc  210 

5.  Town  and  Country  Life Horace  214 

/f.  A  Roman  Poet's  City  Home Becker  217 

The  F"iust  Christian  Century 225 

1.  Tiberius,  Caligula,  and  Claudius.  \  tr  „  ■      n  ,        »      r    225 

'         ^      '  /  Vflleius  Paterculua  ) 

2.  The  Siege  of  Jernsalem 229 

1.  Description  of  Roman  Armies,  &c Jonephua  229 


X  CONTENTS. 

FAOE 

2.  How  Titus  Marclied  to  Jerusalem Josephus  234 

3.  The  Destruction  of  the  City Collier  284 

4.  The  Triumphant  Return  of  Titus Josephus  242 

3.  The  Colosseum Story  247 

4.  The  Eruption  of  Mount  Vesuvius Pliny  259 

5.  A  Satire  on  Roman  Vices  Juvenal  264 

8.  The  Five  Good  Emperoks 266 

i.Nerva  and  Trajan ]  I  w4    ^66 

2.  Pliny's  Correspondence  with  Trajan  concern- 

ing the  Christians .  .    Pliny  267 

3.  Hadrian  and  Antinous George  Taylor  270 

4.  Hadrian's  Villa  at  Tibur George  Taylor  271 

5.  The  Good  Humor  of  Antoninus  Pius Watson  277 

6.  How  a  Young  Roman  Prince  Spent  his  Days. 

(Marcus  Aurelius  to  his  Tutor.). ...   Watson  279 

7.  The  "  Meditations  "  of  Marcus  Aurelius Watson  280 

9.  The  Decline  and  Fall  of  Rome 281 

1.  The  Empire  sold  to  the  Highest  Bidder White  281 

2.  The  Removal  to  Constantinople White  284 

3.  The  Three  Sacks  of  the  Eternal  City  Kingsley  286 

10.  SOCLiL,     Cl\r[L,     AND     RELIGIOUS     PECULIARITIES 

OP  THE  Romans 290 

1.  Roman  Slavery 290 

1.  A  Slave  not  a  Person,  but  a  Thing 290 

2.  Penalty  for  a  Murdered  Master Tacitus  290 

2.  Roman  Superstition 293 

1.  Evil  Omens,  and  how  they  were  Averted Livy  293 

2.  A  Senate  Dismayed  by  the  Contumacious 

Liver  of  an  Ox , Licy  295 

3.  Roman  Jurisprudence 296 

1.  Forms  and  Ceremonies Gibbon  296 

2.  Epochs  in  Jurisprudence "  297 

3.  The  Parent  and  the  Child "  298 

4.  The  Tutor  and  the  Pupil "  299 

5.  Thefts  and  Insults   "  300 

6.  Crimes  and  Punishments "  300 

7.  Voluntary  Exile  and  Death "  802 


10. 

11. 

12. 

i;3. 

14. 
15. 
10. 
17. 
18. 
19. 
20. 
21. 
22. 
23. 
24. 
25. 
20. 


P.\GE 

Frontispiece — Supplicating  the  Gods 

The  Roman  Wolf  Statue 15 

The  Tarpeian  Rock 10 

The  Temple  of  Janus IT 

Roman  Fasces 18 

Roman  Plebeians  of  the  Early  Period 25 

Cincinnatus  Receiving  the  Dictatorship 30 

Hankib.\l  Crossing  the  Alps 41 

Portk.mt  op  Hannibal 41 

Group  of  Roman  Soldiers 50 

Portrait  of  Caius  Julius  C.a:sAR 58 

The  Roman  Imperial  Emblem 01 

Coin  of  Tiberius  C^sak 08 

Coin  of  Nero 70 

Attila,  the  Hun 78 

Roman  Consul  and  Lictors 80 

The  Siege  of  a  City 82 

PoiiTRAiTs  of  Cicero,  Virgil,  Horace,  and  Sallust 80 

I.NTEiiioK  of  a  Roman  Library 89 

The  Roman  Toga 91 

Bridge  ok  St.  Angelo  and  Hadrian's  To.mb 93 

Ri  IN8  OF  the  Colosseum 95 

A  Roman  Augur 98 

A  (Ji.adiatouial  Co.mbat 101 

Dkkssino  a  Ro.man   Hride 103 

Rome  in  the  Time  of  Augustus  ('.tKhar 107 


Xli  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

27.  A  Roman  Lamp 112 

28.  Interior  of  the  House  op  Pansa 114 

29.  Plan  of  the  House  of  Pansa 116 

30.  Eoman  Tombs  along  the  Appian  Way 123 

31.  Frontispiece  to  Part  II. — Death  of  Virginia 123 

32.  Battle  op  Lake  Regillus 141 

33.  A  Roman  Home 145 

34.  Chariot  Race 147 

35.  Death  of  Cesar 193 

36.  Death  of  Cicero 204 

37.  The  Arch  op  Titus 252 

38.  Destruction  op  Pompeii 261 


LIST     OF     MAPS. 

Map  of  the  Roman  Empire  and  its  Provinces 1 

Map  op  the  Early  Tribes  akd  Cities  op  the  Italian  Pen- 
insula    20 

Map  Illustrating  the  Punic  Wars 38 

Map  of  the  Divisions  of  Italia  to  the  Time  op  Augustus.  65 

Map  or  Plan  of  Ancient  Rome 109 


ROME. 

Part  I. 

1.    THE    POLITICAL    HISTORY. 

While  Greece  was  winning  its  freedom  on  the  fields  of 
Marathon  and  Plataea,  and  building  up  the  best  civilization 
the  world  had  then  seen  ;  while  Alexander  was  carrying  the 
Grecian  arms  and  culture  over  the  East ;  while  the  Con- 
queror's successors  were  wrangling  over  the  prize  he  had 
won  ;  while  the  Ptolemies  Avere  transplanting  Grecian 
thought,  but  not  Grecian  freedom,  to  Egyptian  soil ; — 
there  was  slowly  growing  up  on  the  banks  of  the  Tiber  a 
city  that  was  to  found  an  empire  wider  than  Alexander's, 
and  molding  Grecian  civilization,  art,  and  literature  into 
new  forms,  preserve  them  long  after  Greece  had  fallen. 

Contrast  between  Greece  and  Italy. — Grecian  history 
extended  from  the  First  Olympiad  (7TG  u.  c.)  to  the  Roman 
Conquest  (146  b.  c),  a  period  of  six  centuries,  while  its  real 
strength  lasted  only  from  Marathon  to  Chseronea,  less  than 
a  century  and  a  half;  Roman  history  reached  from  the 
founding  of  the  city  (754  B.  c.)  to  its  downfall  (47G  a.  d.), 

Geoffraphicnl  Queffiotit.—^iea  mapB,  pieoa  20  and  fiS.  Describe  the  Tiber. 
Locate  Rome.  Ostia.  AJba  I,onga.  Veii  (Vcji).  The  Sabinos.  The  Etruscans. 
Where  was  Carthaf^e  ?  New  Carthage  ?  Sagiintiim  ?  SyracuHo  ?  Lake  Trasiimcnus  t 
Capoa  ?  Carina:?  Turenlutn?  CiKalpincOiiul  ?  Iapy:ria  (tlie  "heel  oflialy"  reaching 
toward  Greece).  Bruttium  (the  "  toe  of  Italy  ").  What  were  the  llmitri  of  the  empire 
at  the  time  of  it?  greatcKt  extent?  Name  the  principal  countries  which  It  then  In- 
cluded.   Locate  Alexandria.    Antioch.     Smyrna,    riiilippi.    Byzantium. 


14  ROME. 

over  twelve  centuries.  The  coast  of  Italy  was  not,  like  that 
of  Greece,  indented  with  deep  bays,  and  hence  the  people 
were  not  originally  seamen  nor  colonists.  Greece,  cut  up 
into  small  valleys,  offered  no  unity ;  it  grew  around  many 
little  centers,  and  no  two  leaves  on  its  tree  of  liberty  were 
exactly  alike.  But  Italy  exhibited  the  unbroken  advance  of 
one  imperial  city  to  universal  dominion.  In  Greece,  there 
were  the  fickleness  and  jealousies  of  petty  states ;  in  Italy, 
the  power  and  resources  of  a  mighty  nation.  Greece  lay 
open  to  the  East;  she  originally  drew  her  inspiration  thence, 
and  in  time  returned  thither  the  fruits  of  her  civilization. 
Italy  lay  open  in  the  opposite  direction,  and  sent  the  strength 
of  her  civilization  to  regenerate  barbarian  Europe.  The 
work  of  the  Greek  seems  to  have  been  to  exhibit  the  triumphs 
of  the  mind,  and  to  illustrate  the  pi'inciples  of  liberty  ;  that 
of  Rome,  to  subdue  by  irresistible  force,  to  manifest  the 
power  of  law,  and  to  bind  the  nations  together  for  the  com- 
ing of  a  new  religion.  When  Greece  fell  from  her  high 
estate,  she  left  nothing  but  her  history,  and  the  achievements 
of  her  artists  and  statesmen.  When  the  Roman  Empire 
broke  to  pieces,  the  great  nations  of  Europe  sprang  from  the 
ruins,  and  their  languages,  civilization,  laws,  and  religion 
took  their  form  from  the  Mistress  of  the  World. 

The  Early  Inhabitants  of  Italy  were  mainly  of  the 
same  Aryan  swarm  that  settled  Greece.  But  they  had  be- 
come very  different  from  the  Hellenes,  and  had  split  into 
various  hostile  tribes.  Between  the  Arno  and  the  Tiber 
lived  the  Etruscans  or  Tuscans — a  league  of  twelve  cities. 
These  people  were  great  builders,  and  skilled  in  the  arts. 
In  northern  Italy  Cisalpine  Gaul  was  inhabited  by  Celts, 
akin  to  those  upon  the  other  side  of  the  Alps.  Southern 
Italy  contained  many  prosperous  Greek  cities.  The  Italians 
occupied  central  Italy.     They  were  divided  into  the  Latins 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTOKY, 


15 


and  Oscans.    The  former  comprised  a  league  of  thirty  towns 
south  of  the  Tiber  ;  the  latter  consisted  of  various  tribes  liv- 
ing eastward — Samnites,  Sabines,  etc.* 
Rome  was  founded  f  (754  b.c.)  by  the  Latins,  perhaps 


♦  Some  authorities  group  the  Samnites,  Sabines,  Umbrians,  Oscans,  Sabellians, 
etc.,  as  the  Umbrians;  and  others  call  tliem  the  UmAro- Sabellians.  They  were 
doubtless  closely  related. 

+  Of  the  early  history  op  Rome  there  is  no  reliable  account,  as  the  records 
were  burned  when  the  city  was  destroyed  by  the  Gauls  (390  B.  c),  and  it  was  five 
hundred  years  after  the  founding  of  tlie  city  (A.  U.  C,  anno  urbis  co?ulitce)  before  the 
first  rude  attempt  was  made  to  write  a  continuous  narrative  of  its  origin.  The  names 
of  the  early  monarchs  are  probably  personifications,  rather  than  the  appellations  of 
real  persons.  The  word  Rome  itself  means  border,  and  probably  had  no  relation  to 
the  fabled  Romulus.  The  history  which  was  accepted  in  later  times  by  the  Romans 
and  has  come  down  to  us  is  a  series  of  beautiful  legends.  In  the  text  is  given  the 
real  history  as  now  received  by  the  best  critics,  and  in  the  notes  the  mythical  storiea. 

MsEAS,  favored  by  the  god 
Mercury  and  led  by  his  mother 
Venus,  came,  after  the  destiiic- 
tion  of  Troy,  to  Italy.  There  his 
son  Ascanius  built  the  Long 
White  City  (Alba  Longa).  Uis 
descendants  reigned  in  peace  for 
three  hundred  years.  When  it 
came  time,  according  to  the  de- 
cree of  the  gods,  that  Rome 
should  be  founded, 

Romulus  and  Remus  were 
born.  Their  mother,  Rhea  Silvia, 
was  a  priestess  of  the  goddess 
Vesta,  and  their  father.  Mars,  the 
god  of  war.  Amulius,  who  had 
nanrpcd  the  Alban  throne  from 
their  grandfather  Numilor,  or- 
dered the  babes  to  be  thrown 
Into  the  Tiber.  Thoy  were,  how- 
ever, cast  ashore  at  the  foot  of 
Mount  Palatine.  Ilerc  thoy  were 
nursed  by  a  wolf.  One  Faustulus 
passing  near  was  struck  by  the 
Bight,  and  carrying  the  children 
home  brought  them  up  as  his 
own.  Romulus  and  Remus  on 
coming  to  age  discovered  their 
true  rank,  slew  the  usurper,  and  restored  their  grandfatlicr  Niimitor  to  his  throne. 

Founding  op  Rf)MK.— Tlic  brothers  then  dr'terminod  to  found  a  city  near  the  spot 
where  they  had  been  so  wonderfully  preserveil,  imd  agreed  to  watch  the  flight  of 
birds  In  order  to  decide  which  should  fix  upon  the  site  Rcinus,  on  the  Avenlino 
hill,  saw  six  vultures  ;  but  Romulu'*,  on  llie  Palatine,  saw  twelve,  and  was  declared 
victor  lie  accordintrly  began  to  mark  out  the  boundaries  with  a  brazen  plough, 
drawn  by  a  bullock  and  a  heifer.    As  the  mud  wall  arose,  liemus  in  scorn  jumped 


ROMAN    WOLF   STATUE. 


16 


ROME. 


a  colony  sent  out  from  Alba  Longa,  as  an  outpost  against 
the  Etruscans,  whom  they  greatly  feared.  At  an  early  date 
it  contained  about  one  thousand  miserable,  thatched  huts, 
surrounded  by  a  wall.  Most  of  the  inhabitants  were  shep- 
herds or  farmers,  who  tilled  the  land  upon  the  plain  near 
by,  but  lived  for  protection  within  their  fortifications  on 
the  Palatine  Hill.  It  is  probable  that  the  hills  afterward 
covered  by  Rome  were  then  occupied  by  Latins,  and  that 
the  cities  of  Latium  formed  a  confederacy,  with  Alba  Longa 
at  the  head. 


over  it.  WTiereupon  Romulus  slew  him,  exclaiming,  "  So  perish  every  one  who  may 
try  to  leap  over  those  ramparts  I  "  The  new  city  he  called  Rome  after  his  own  name, 
and  hecame  its  first  king.  To  secure  inhabitants,  he  opened  an  asylum  for  refugees 
and  criminals.  But  lacking  women,  he  resorted  to  a  curious  expedient.  A  great 
festival  in  honor  of  Neptune  was  appointed,  and  the  neighboring  people  were  invited 
to  come  with  their  families.  In  the  midst  of  the  games  the  young  Romans  rushed 
among  the  spectators,  and  each  seizing  a  maiden,  carried  her  off  to  be  his  wife.  The 
indignant  parents  returned  home,  but  only  to  come  back  in  arms,  and  thirsting  for 
vengeance.  The  Sabines  laid  siege  to  the  citadel  on  the  Capitoline  hill.  Tarpeia, 
the  commandant's  daughter,  dazzled  by  the  glitter  of  their  golden  bracelets  and 

rings,  promised  to  betray  the 
fortress  if  the  Sabines  would 
give  her  "  what  they  \\  ore  on 
their  left  arms."  As  they 
passed  in  through  the  gate, 
which  she  opened  for  them 
in  the  night,  they  crushed  her 
beneath  their  heavy  shields. 
Henceforth  that  part  of  the 
hill  was  called  the  Tarpeian 
Rock,  and  down  its  precipice 
traitors  were  hurled  to  death. 
The  next  day  after  Tarpeia's 
treachery,  the  battle  raged  in 
the  valley  between  the  Capi- 
toline and  Palatine  hills.  In 
his  distress,  Romulus  vowed 
a  temple  to  Jupiter.  The  Ro- 
mans thereupon  turned  and 
drove  hack  their  foes.  In  the 
flight,  Mcttius  Curtius,  the 
leader  of  the  Sabines,  sank 
with  his  horse  Into  a  marsh, 
and  nearly  perished.  Ere  the  contest  could  be  renewed,  the  Sabine  women,  with 
disheveled  hair,  suddenly  rushed  between  their  kindred  and  new-found  husbands, 
and  implored  peace.  Their  entreaties  prevailed,  the  two  people  united,  and  their 
kings  reigned  jointly.  As  the  Sabmes  came  from  Cures,  the  united  people  were 
called  Romans  and  Quirites. 


THE   TARPEIAN    ROCK    (FROM    AN    OLD   PRINT). 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY. 


17 


The  Government  was  aristocratic.  There  were  a  priest- 
king,  a  senate,  and  an  assembly.  The  priest-king  offered 
sacrifices,  and  presided  over  the  senate.  The  senate  had  the 
right  to  discuss,  and  vote  ;  the  assembly,  to  discuss  only. 
Each  original  family  or  house  {gens)  was  represented  in 
the  senate  by  its  head.  This  body  was  therefore  composed 
of  the  fathers  (jmtres),  and  was  from  the  beginning  the 
soul  of  the  rising  city ;  while  throughout  its  entire  history 
the  intelligence,  experience,  and  wisdom  gathered  in  the 
senate,  determined  the  policy  and  shaped  the  public  life 

RoMTTLCs,  after  tlie  death  of  Tatius,  became  sole  king.  He  divided  tlie  people  into 
nobles  and  comuious  ;  ilie  former  he  caXlud  patricians,  and  the  VMer  plebeians.  The 
patricians  were  separated  into  three  tribes— 7?amwe«,  Titles,  and  Luceres.  In  each  of 
these  he  made  ten  divisions  or  ounce.  The  thirty  curiai  foimed  the  assembly  of  the 
people.  Tlie  plebeian^  being  apportioned  as  tenants  and  dependents  among  the 
patricians,  were  called  clients.  One  huudn  d  of  the  patricians  were  chosen  for  age  and 
wisdom,  and  styled /a^A^srs  (patres).  After  Romuhis  had  reigned  thirty-seven  years, 
and  done  all  these  things  according  to  the  will  of  the  gods,  one  day,  during  a  violent 
thunder-storm,  he  disappeared  from  sight,  and  was  henceforth  worshipped  as  a  god. 

Noma  Pompii.iu3,  a  pious  Sabine,  was  the  secoud  king.  Numa  was  wise  from 
his  youth,  as  a  sign  of  which  his  hair  was  gray  at  birth.  He  was  trained  by  Pythag- 
oras in  all  the  vast  knowledge  of  the  Greeks ; 
and  was  wont,  in  a  sacred  grove  near  Rome,  to 
meet  the  nymph  Egeria.  who  taught  liim  lessons 
of  wisdom,  and  how  men  below  should  worship 
the  gods  aliove.  By  pouring  wine  into  the  spring 
whence  Fannus  and  Picus,  the  gods  of  the  wood, 
drank,  he  led  them  to  tell  him  the  secret  charm 
to  gain  the  will  of  Jupiter.  Peace  smiled  on  the 
land  during  his  happy  reign,  and  the  doors  of  the 
temple  of  Janus  remained  closed. 

TrLi.T:s  IIosTiLius,  the  third  king,  loved  war 
as  Numa  did  pence.  He  soon  got  into  a  quarrel 
with  Alba  Longa.  As  the  armies  were  about  to 
fight.  It  was  agreed  to  decide  the  contest  by  a 
combat  between  the  Horatii — three  brothers  in 
the  Roman  ranks,  and  the  Curatii— three  brothers 
in  the  Alban.  They  were  cousins,  and  one  of  the 
Curntii  was  engaged  to  be  married  to  a  sister  of  one  of  the  Horatii.  In  the  fight, 
two  of  the  IToratii  were  killed,  when  the  third  pretended  to  run.  The  Curatii,  be- 
ranse  of  their  wounds,  followed  him  slowly,  and  becoming  separated,  he  turned 
about  and  slew  them  one  by  one.  As  the  victor  returned  laden  with  the  spoils,  he 
met  his  sister,  who,  catehin?  sight  of  the  robe  which  she  had  embroidcTcd  lor  her 
lover,  burst  info  tear".  Iloratius.  unable  to  hear  her  reproaches,  struck  her  dead, 
saying,  "  So  perish  any  Roman  woman  who  Inmcnts  a  foe  1 "  The  inurd'Ter  was  con- 
demned to  (lie,  but  the  peojile  spared  him  because  his  valor  had  suvimI  Rome.  Alba 
enbmitted,but  the  inhabitants  jjrovlng  trc'icli'Tou".  the  city  was  razed,  and  the'  people 
were  taken  to  Rome  and  located  on  the  Coeiian  hill.    The  AJbaus  and  the  Rom«ai> 


TEMPLK   OF   JANUS. 


18 


ROME. 


that  made  Rome  the  Mistress  of  the  World.  The  assembly 
{comitia  curiata)  consisted  of  the  males  belonging  to  these 
ancient  families.  The  members  voted  in  ten  bodies  {curice), 
each  containing  the  nobles  of  ten  houses  (gentes). 

Sabine  Invasion  and  League. — The  Sabines,  coming 
down  the  valley  of  the  Tiber,  captured  the  Capitoline  and 
Quirinal  hills.  There  Avere  frequent  conflicts  between  these 
near  neighbors,  but  they  soon  came  into  an  alliance.  Finally, 
the  two  tribes  formed  one  city,  and  the  people  were  there- 
after known  as  Rornans  and  Quirites.     Both  had  seats  in 

now  became  one  nation  as  the  Sabines  and  the  Romans  had  become  in  the  days  of 

Romulus.    In  his  old  age  Tullus  sought  to  find  out  the  will  of  Jupiter,  using  the  spells 

of  Numa,  but  angry  Jove  struck  him  with  a  thunderbolt. 

Angus  Marcitjs,  the  grandson  of  Numa,  conquered  many  Latin  cities,  and, 
bringing  the  inhabitants  to  Rome,  gave  them  homes  on 
the  Aventine  hill.  He  wrote  Numa's  laws  on  a  white 
board  in  the  Forum,  built  a  bridge  over  the  Tiber,  aud 
erected  the  Mamertine  prison,  the  first  in  the  city. 

Tarquinius  Priscus,  the  fifth  king,  was  an  Etruscan, 
who  came  to  Rome  during  the  reign  of  Ancus.  As  he 
approached  the  city,  an  eagle  flew  circling  above  his 
head,  seized  his  cap,  rose  high  in  air,  and  then  returning 
replaced  it.  His  wife,  TanaquU,  being  learned  in  augury, 
foretold  that  he  was  coming  to  distinguished  honor.  Her 
prediction  proved  true,  for  he  greatly  pleased  Ancus, 
who  named  him  as  his  successor  in  place  of  his  own 
children.  The  people  ratified  the  choice,  and  the  event 
proved  its  wisdom.  Tarquin  built  the  famous  Drain 
(cloaca),  which  still  remains  with  scarce  a  stone  dis- 
placed. He  planned  the  Great  Race-Course  (Circus 
Maximus),  and  its  games.  He  conquered  Etruria,  and 
the  Etruscans  sent  him  "  a  golden  crown,  a  sceptre,  an 
ivory  chair,  a  purple  toga,  an  embroidered  tunic,  and  an 
axe  tied  in  a  bundle  of  rods."  So  the  Romans  adopted 
these  emblems  of  royal  power  as  signs  of  their  do- 
minion. 

Now  there  was  a  boy  named  Servius  Tullius  brought 
up  in  the  palace,  who  was  a  favorite  of  the  king.  One 
day  while  the  child  was  asleep  lambent  flames  were  seen 
playing  about  his  head.  Tanaquil  foresaw  from  this 
that  he  was  destined  to  great  things.  He  was  hence- 
forth in  high  favor ;  he  married  the  king's  daughter, 
and  became  his  counsellor.  The  sons  of  Ancus  fearing 
lest  Servius  should  succeed  to  the  throne,  and  being 
wroth  with  Tarquin  because  of  the  loss  of  their  paternal 
inheritance,  assassinated  the  king.  But  Tanaquil  re- 
ported that  Tarquin  was  only  wounded,  and  wished  that 

Servius  might  govern  until  he  recovered.    When  the  deception  was  found  out, 


i 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  19 

the  senate,  and  the  king  was  taken  alternately  from  each. 
This  was  henceforth  the  mode  of  Rome's  gi'owth ;  she  ad- 
mitted her  allies  and  conquered  enemies  to  citizenship,  thus 
adding  their  strength  to  her  own,  and  making  her  victories 
their  victories. 

Alba  Longa,  the  chief  town  of  the  Latin  league  and  the 
mother-city  of  Rome,  was  herself,  after  a  time,  destroyed, 
and  the  inhabitants  were  transferred  to  Rome.  The  Alban 
nobles,  now  perhaps  called  Luceres,  with  the  Sabines  (7Y//es), 
already  joined  to  the  original  Romans  (Ramnes),  made  the 

Servics  was  flrmly  fixed  in  his  seat.  He  made  a  league  witli  the  Latins,  and,  as 
a  sign  of  the  union,  built  to  Diana  a  temple  on  the  Aventine,  where  both  peoples 
offered  annual  sacrifices  for  Rome  and  Latium.  He  enlarged  Rome,  enclosing  the 
seven  hills  with  a  stone  wall ;  and  divided  the  city  into  four  parts — called  tribex,  after 
the  old  division  of  the  people  as  instituted  by  Romulus— and  all  the  land  about  into 
twenty-six  districts.  The  son  of  a  bond-maid,  Servius  favored  the  common  people. 
This  was  shown  in  his  separation  of  all  the  Romans— patricians  and  plebeians- into 
five  classes,  according  to  their  wealth.  These  classes  were  subdivided  into  centuries, 
and  they  were  to  assemble  in  this  military  order  when  the  king  wished  to  consult 
concerning  peace  or  war,  or  laws.  In  the  centuriate  assembly  the  richest  citizens 
had  the  chief  influence,  for  they  formed  eighty  centuries,  and  the  knights  {equites) 
eighteen  centuries,  each  having  a  vote;  while  fewer  votes  were  given  to  the  lower 
classes.  But  this  arrangement  was  not  unjust,  since  the  ^vealthy  were  to  provide 
themselves  with  heavy  armor,  and  fight  in  the  front  rank  ;  while  the  poorest  citizens, 
who  formed  but  one  century,  were  exempt  from  military  service. 

The  two  daughters  of  Seni.m  were  married  to  the  two  sons  of  Tarquinius  the 
Elder.  The  couples  were  ill-matched,  in  each  case  the  good  and  gentle  being  mated 
with  the  cruel  and  haughty.  Finally,  Tullia  murdered  her  husband,  and  Lucius 
killed  his  wife,  and  these  two  partners  in  crime  and  of  like  evil  iustincts,  were  mar- 
ried. Lucius  now  conspired  with  the  nobles  against  the  king.  His  plans  being  ripe, 
one  day  lie  went  into  the  senate  and  sat  down  on  the  throne.  Servius  hearing  the 
tumult  which  arose,  hastened  hither.  Whereupon  Lucius  hurled  the  king  headlong 
down  the  steps.  As  the  old  man  was  tottering  homeward  the  usurper's  attendants 
followed  and  murdered  him.  Tullia  hastened  to  the  senate  to  salute  her  husband  as 
king.  But  he,  somewhat  less  brutal  than  she,  ordered  her  back.  While  returning, 
her  driver  came  to  the  prostrate  body  of  the  king  and  was  about  to  turn  aside,  when 
Bhe  fiercely  bade  him  "Go  forward  !"  The  blood  of  her  father  spattered  her  dress 
as  the  chariot  rolled  over  his  lifeless  remains.  The  place  took  its  name  from  this 
horrid  deed,  and  was  henceforth  knownas  the  Wicked  Street. 

Lucius  Tarqui.mcs,  who  thus  became  the  seventh  and  last  king,  was  sumamed 
Superbus  (the  Proud).  lie  erected  ma'-sive  edifices,  compi'lling  (he  workmen  to  re- 
ceive such  pitiable  wages  that  many  in  despair  committed  suicide.  In  digging  the 
foundations  of  a  tcmplr  to  .Jupiti-r,  a  bleeding  head  (caput )  was  discovered.  This  the 
king  took  to  be  an  omen  that  the  city  was  to  become  thelieadof  the  world,  and  so  gave 
the  name  Capitoliue  to  the  teitiplc,  and  the  hill  on  which  it  stood.  In  the  vaults  of 
this  temple  were  deposited  (he  Sibylline  books,  concerning  wliirli  a  singular  slory  was 
told.  One  day  a  sibyl  from  Cuma;  came  to  the  king,  ofliTing  to  mOI  him  for  a  fabnloiis 
sum  nine  books  of  prophecies.    Tarqnin  declined  to  buy.    Whereupon  she  burned 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  21 

number  of  tribes  three ;  of  curiae,  thirty  ;  and  of  houses, 
(probably)  three  liundred. 

Etruscan  Conquest. — The  rising  city  was,  in  its  turn, 
conquered  by  the  Etruscans,  who  placed  the  Tarquius  on 
the  throne.  This  foreign  dynasty  were  builders  as  well  as 
warriors.  They  adorned  Kome  with  elegant  edifices  of 
Etruscan  architecture.  They  added  the  adjacent  heights  to 
the  growing  capital,  and  extended  around  the  "  seven-hilled 
city"  a  stone  wall,  which  lasted  eight  centuries.  Eome, 
within  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  after  her  founding,  be- 
came the  head  of  Latium. 

three  of  the  book?,  and  demancled  the  same  price  for  the  remaining  six.  Tarquin 
laughed,  tliiukiiig  her  mad.  But  when  she  burned  three  more,  and  still  asked  the 
orijjinal  amount  for  the  other  volumes,  the  king  began  to  reflect,  and  finally  bought 
the  books.  They  were  thereafter  jealously  guarded,  and  consulted  in  all  great  state 
emergencies. 

The  Latin  town  of  Gabil  was  taken  by  a  stratagem.  Sextns,  the  son  of  Tarquin, 
pretending  to  have  fled  from  his  father's  ill-usage,  took  refuge  in  that  city. 
Having  secured  the  confidence  of  the  people,  he  secretly  sent  to  his  father,  asking 
advice.  Tarquin  merely  took  the  messenger  into  his  garden,  and  walking  to  and  fro, 
knocked  off  with  his  cane  the  tallest  poppies.  Sextus  read  his  father's  meaning,  and 
managed  to  get  rid  of  the  chief  men  of  Gabii,  when  it  was  easy  to  give  up  the  place 
to  the  Hoinans. 

Tarquin  was  greatly  troubled  by  a  strange  omen,  a  serpent  having  eaten  the  sacri- 
fice on  the  royal  altar.  The  two  sons  of  the  king  were  accordingly  sent  to  consult 
the  oracle  at  Dtlplii.  They  were  accompanied  by  their  cousin  Junius,  called  Brutus 
because  of  hi«  silline-s,  which  however  was  only  assumed,  through  fear  of  the  tyrant 
who  had  already  killed  his  brother.  The  king's  sons  made  the  Delphic  god  costly 
[ircsents  ;  Brutus  brought  only  a  simple  staff,  but,  unknown  to  the  rest,  this  was 
hollow  and  filled  with  gold.  Having  executed  their  commission,  the  young  men 
asked  the  priestess  which  of  them  should  be  king.  The  reply  was,  "The  one  who 
first  kisses  his  mother."  On  reaching  Italy,  Brutus  pretending  to  faU,  kissed  the 
ground,  the  common  mother  of  us  all. 

As  the  royal  princes  and  Tarquinius  Collatinas  were  one  day  feasting  in  the  camp, 
a  di^-pute  arose  concerning  the  industry  of  their  wives.  To  decide  it  they  at  once 
liasf'iied  homeward  through  thc^  darkness.  They  found  the  king's  daughters  at  a 
festival,  whilf!  Lucretia,  the  wife  of  Collatinus,  was  in  the  midst  of  her  slaves,  distaff 
in  hand.  Collatinus  was  exultant  ;  but  soon  after  Lucretia,  stung  by  the  insults 
she  received  from  Sextus,  killed  her.«clf,  calling  upon  her  friends  to  avenge  her 
fate.  Brntu'*,  casting  off  the  mask  of  madness,  drew  forth  the  daL'ger  she  used,  and 
vowed  to  kill  Sextu"  and  expel  tlie  d'-tosted  race.  The  oath  was  repeated  as  the  red 
blade  passed  from  hand  lo  !iand.  The  people  rose  in  indignatir)n,  and  drove  the 
Tarrpiins  from  the  city.  TIcncefortli  the  Romans  hated  the  very  name  of  king.  Rome 
now  became  a  free  city  after  it  h.id  been  governed  by  kings  for  two  hundred  and  forty- 
five  years.  The  peopU-  chose  for  rulers  two  ronsnls.  elected  yearly  ;  and  to  offer 
pacriflcea  in  place  of  the  king,  they  selected  a  priest  who  should  have  uo  power  in  the 
state. 


22  K  0  M  E  . 

TJie  Tdvquins  were  the  friends  of  the  common  people 
(plebs),  who  already  began  to  be  ill  treated  by  the  nobles. 
In  order  to  help  the  plebs,  Servius  divided  all  the  Romans 
into  five  classes  according  to  their  property,  and  these  again 
into  one  hundred  and  ninety-three  centuries  or  companies. 
The  i^eople  were  directed  to  assemble  by  centuries  {comitia 
centuriata),  either  to  fight  or  to  vote.  This  body,  in  fact, 
constituted  an  army,  and  was  called  together  on  the  field  of 
Mars  by  the  blast  of  the  trumpet.  To  the  new  centuriate 
assembly  was  given  the  right  of  selecting  the  king  and 
enacting  the  laws.     The  king  was  deprived  of  his  power  as 

Brutus  and  CoLLATraus  were  the  first  consuls.  Soon  after  this  the  two  sons  of 
Brutus  plotted  to  bring  Tarquin  back.  Their  father  was  sitting  on  the  judgment-seat 
when  they  were  brought  in  lor  trial.  The  stern  old  Roman,  true  to  duty,  sentenced 
both  to  death  as  traitors. 

Tarquin  now  induced  the  Etruscans  of  the  towns  of  Veil  and  Tarquinii  to  aid 
him,  and  they  accordingly  marched  toward  Rome.  The  Romans  went  forth  to  meet 
them.  As  the  two  armies  drew  near,  Aruns,  son  of  Tarquin,  catching  sight  of  Brutus, 
rushed  forward,  and  the  two  enemies  fell  dead  pierced  by  each  other's  spears.  Night 
alone  checked  the  terrible  contest  which  ensued.  During  the  darkness  the  voice  of 
the  god  Silvanus  was  heard  in  the  woods,  saying  that  Rome  had  beaten  since  the 
Etruscans  had  lost  one  man  more  than  the  Romans.  The  Etruscans  fled  in  dismay. 
The  matrons  of  Rome  mourned  Brutus  for  a  whole  year  because  he  had  so  bravely 
avenged  the  wrongs  of  Lucretia. 

Next  came  a  powerful  army  of  Etruscans  under  Porsenna,  king  of  Clusium.  He 
captured  Janicnlum  (a  hill  just  across  the  Tiber),  and  would  have  forced  liis  way  into 
the  city  with  the  fleeing  Romans  had  not  Horatius  Codes,  with  two  brave  men,  held 
the  bridge  while  it  was  cut  down  behind  them.  As  the  timbers  tottered,  his  com- 
panions rushed  across.  But  he  kept  the  enemy  at  bay  until  the  shouts  of  the  Romans 
told  him  the  bridge  was  gone,  when,  with  a  prayer  to  fother  Tiber,  he  leaped  into  the 
strenm.  and,  amid  a  shower  of  arrows,  swam  safely  to  the  bank.  The  people  never 
tired  of  praising  this  hero.  They  erected  a  statue  in  his  honor,  and  gave  him  as 
much  land  as  he  could  plow  in  a  day. 

"  And  still  his  name  sounds  stirring 
Unto  the  men  of  Rome, 
As  the  trumpet-blast  that  cries  to  them 

To  charge  the  Volscian  home. 
And  wives  still  pray  to  Juno 

For  boys  with  hearts  as  bold 
As  his  who  kept  the  bridge  so  well 
In  the  brave  days  of  old." 

—Macaulay's  Lays. 

Porsenna  now  laid  siege  to  the  city.  Then  Mucius.  a  young  noble,  went  to  the 
Etruscin  camp  to  kill  PorsL-nna.  By  mistake  he  slew  the  treasurer.  Being  dragge.l 
before  the  kiiiir  and  threatened  with  death  if  he  did  not  confess  his  accomplices,  he 
thrust  his  right  hand  into  an  altar-fire,  and  held  it  there  until  it  was  burned  to  a 


509  B.C.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTOKY.  23 

priest,  this  office  being  conferred  on  the  chief  pontiff.  The 
higher  classes,  aggrieved  by  these  changes,  at  last  combined 
with  other  Latin  cities  to  expel  their  Etruscan  rulers.  Kings 
now  came  to  an  end  at  Eome.  This  was  in  509  b.  c. — a  year 
lifter  Ilippias  was  driven  out  of  Athens 

The  Republic  was  then  established.  Two  chief  magis- 
trates, consuls  (at  first  called  proetors),  were  chosen,  it  being 
thought  that  if  one  turned  out  Ijadly  the  other  would  check 
him.  The  constitution  of  Servius  was  adopted,  and  the 
senate,  which  had  dwindled  in  size,  was  restored  to  its  ideal 
number,  three  hundred,  by  the  addition  of  one  hundred  and 
sixty-four  life-members  (conscripti)  chosen  from  the  richest 
of  the  knights  {equites),  several  of  these  being  i^lebeians. 

The  Struggle  between  the  Patricians  and  the 
Plebeians  was  the  characteristic  of  the  first  two  hundred 
years  of  the  repablic.  The  patricians  were  the  descendants 
of  tlie  first  settlers.  They  were  rich,  proud,  exclusive, 
and  demanded  all  the  offices  of  the  government.  Each 
of  these  nobles  was  supported  by  a  powerful  body  of  clients 
or  depcndantr>.  The  plebeians  were  the  newer  families. 
They  were  generally  poor,  forbidden   the  riglits  of  citizens, 

crisp.  Pon-enna,  amazed  at  his  firmness,  gave  him  his  liberty.  Miicius  thereupon 
lold  till'  kin;;  that  three  hundred  Roman  youths  had  sworn  to  accompli^•h  his  death. 
I'orscnna,  alanned  for  his  life,  made  peace  with  Rome.  Among  the  hostages  given 
'ly  Rome  was  Cloelia,  a  noble  maiden,  who,  escaping  from  the  Etruscan  camp,  swam 
I  he  Tiber.  The  Romans  sent  her  back,  but  Porsenna,  admiring  her  courage,  set  her 
'.  • 'C. 

T.iiqnin  next  "ccured  a  league  of  thirty  L;itin  cities  to  aid  in  his  restoration.  In 
•.is  emergency  the  Romans  appointed  a  dictator,  who  should  possess  absolute  power 
;  >r  six  months.  .V  great  battle  was  fought  at  Lake  Regillu^.  Like  most  ancient  con- 
tests, it  began  with  a  series  of  single  encounlirs.  Fiist,  V.irquin  and  the  Roman 
■.Ictafor  fought.  Then,  the  Latin  dictator  aud  the  Roni.in  master  of  horse.  Finally, 
i  he  ma'ii  armies  came  to  blows.  The  Romans  being  worsted,  their  dictatoi-  vowed  a 
temple  to  Castor  and  Pollux.  Si!('d<-:.Iy  tlie  Twin  Brethren,  taller  and  fairer  than 
men,  on  snow-white  horses  and  tiad  in  r:;re  annor,  v  ere  seen  flghtiiia-  at  his  side. 
Everywhere  the  Lilins  broke  and  fl  d  belore  them.  Tarfpiin  pave  up  his  attempt  In 
despair.  That  night  two  riders,  their  h'ir-ps  wet  with  foam  and  Mood,  rode  up  to  a 
fountain  before  the  temple  of  Vcsia  at  Roinc,  and.  .".s  tliev  ■  n-hed  off  m  the  cool 
water  the  traces  of  the  battle,  told  horv  a  fjreat  victory  liad  been  won  over  the  Latin 
ho^t.      Sec  Steele" »  New  Agtronomy.  p.  SilT. 


24  ROME.  [494  B.  c. 

and  not  allowed  to  intermarry  with  the  patricians.  Obliged 
to  serve  in  the  army  without  pay,  during  their  absence  their 
farms  remained  untilled,  and  were  often  ravaged  by  the 
encm}^  Forced,  when  they  returned  from  war,  to  borrow 
money  of  the  patricians  for  seed,  tools,  and  food,  if  they 
failed  in  their  payments  they  could  be  sold  as  slaves,  or  cut 
in  pieces  for  distribution  among  their  creditors.  Tlie  prisons 
connected  with  the  houses  of  the  great  patricians  were  full 
of  plebeian  delators. 

Secession  to  Mons  Sacer. — Tribunes  (494  b.  c). — 
The  condition  of  the  plebs  became  so  unbearable  that  they 
finally  marched  off  in  a  body  and  encamped  on  the  Sacred 
]\Iount,  where  they  determined  to  build  a  new  city,  and  let 
the  patricians  have  the  old  one  for  themselves.  The 
patricians,*  in  alarm,  settled  the  difficulty  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  tribunes  of  the  people,  whose  persons  were  to  be 
sacred,  and  whose  houses,  standing  open  day  and  night, 
were  to  be  places  of  refuge.  To  these  new  officers  was  after- 
ward given  the  power  of  veto  (I  forbid)  over  any  law  passed 
by  the  senate  and  considered  injurious  to  the  plebs.  Such 
was  the  exclusiveness  of  the  senate,  however,  that  the  trib- 
unes could  not  enter  the  senate-house,  but  were  obliged  to 
remain  outside,  and  shout  the  ''veto"  through  the  open 
door. 

There  were  now  two  distinct  peoples  in  Rome,  each  with 
its  own  interests  and  officers.  This  is  well  illustrated  in  the 
fact  that  the  agreement  made  on  Mons  Sacer  was  concluded 
in  the  form  of  an  international  treaty,  with  the  usual  oaths 
and  sacrifices;  and  that  the  magistrates  of  the  plebs  were 

*  01(1  Menenins  A^rippa  produced  a  great  effect  upon  the  plebeians  l)y  telling  them 
the  following  fable  :  Oncu  upon  a  time  the  various  organs  of  the  body  becoming  I  ired 
of  supporting  the  stomach  in  idleness,  '■  struck  work."  The  legs  stopped  ;  tlio  hands 
would  not  carry  ;  and  the  teeth  would  not  chew.  But  after  a  Utile  they  all  began  to 
fail  for  lack  of  food,  and  then  they  fouod  how  much  they  depended  on  the  stomach, 
in  Bpite  of  its  apparent  laziness. 


494  B.C.] 


THE     POLITICAL     UISTORY. 


25 


ROMAM    PLEBEIANS. 


declared  to  be  inviolate, 
like  the  ambassadors  of 
a  foreign  power. 

The  three  popular 
assemblies  which  ex- 
isted in  Rome,  with 
their  peculiar  organiza- 
tion and  powers,  mark- 
ed as  many  stages  of 
constitutional  growth 
in  the  state. 

The  assembly  of  curies 
(comitia  curiata),  the 
oldest  and  long  the 
only  one,  was  based  on 
the  patrician  .=c})aration 

into  tribes  (Ramnes,  Tities,  and  Luceres).  Xo  plebeian  had 
a  voice  in  this  gathering,  and  it  early  lost  its  influence  and 
became  a  relic  of  the  past.  The  assembly  of  centuries 
(Liomitia  centuriata)  came  in  with  the  Etruscan  kings,  and 
was  essentially  a  military  organization.  Based  on  classes  of 
the  entire  population,  it  gave  the  plebeians  their  first  voice, 
though  a  weak  one,  in  public  affairs.  The  assembly  of  iho 
I  vibes  (comitia  tribnta),  introduced  with  the  rising  of  the 
pleb.s,  was  based  on  tlie  new  separation  into  tribes,  /.  e., 
v;ards  and  districts.  The  patricians  were  lierc  excluded  as 
iho  plebeians  had  been  at  first ;  and  Home,  which  began 
witli  a  purely  aristocratic  assembly,  had  now  a  purely  demo- 
cratic one. 

The  original  number  of  t!ie  local  tribes  was  twenty 
in  .'ill  —  four  city  wards  and  sixteen  country  districts. 
Witli  the  growth  of  tiie  republic  and  the  acquisition  of  new 
territory,  the  number  was  increased  to  thirty-five  (241  u.  c). 


20  ROME,  [486  B.  C. 

The  Eoman  citizens  were  then  so  numerous  and  so  scattered 
that  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  meet  at  Eome  to  elect 
officers  and  make  laws  ;  but  still  the  organization  was  kept 
up  till  the  end  of  the  republic. 

An  Agrarian  La^v  {ager,  a  field)  was  the  next  measure 
of  relief  granted  to  the  common  people.  It  was  customary 
for  the  Romans  Avhen  they  conquered  a  territory  to  leave  the 
owners  a  part  of  the  land,  and  to  take  the  rest  for  them- 
selves. Though  this  became  public  property,  the  patricians 
used  it  as  their  own.  The  plebeians,  who  bore  the  brunt  of 
the  fighting,  naturally  thought  they  had  the  best  claim  to 
the  spoils  of  war,  and  with,  the  assertion  of  their  civil  rights 
came  now  a  claim  for  the  rights  of  property.* 

Spurius  Gassius  \  (486  b.  c),  though  himself  a  patrician, 
secured  a  law  ordaining  that  j^art  of  the  public  lands  should 
be  divided  among  the  ]}Ooy  plebeians,  and  the  patricians 
should  pay  rent  for  the  rest.  But  the  patricians  were  so 
strong  that  they  made  the  law  a  dead  letter,  and  finally, 
on  the  charge  of  wishing  to  be  king,  put  Spurius  to  death, 
and  leveled  his  house  to  the  gi'ound.  The  agitation,  how- 
ever, still  continued. 

The  Decemvirs  (451  b.  c). — The  tribunes,  through 
ignorance  of  the  laws,  which  were  jealously  guarded  as  the 
exclusive  property  of  the  patricians,  were  often  thwarted 
in  their  measures  to  aid  the  common  people.  The  plebs 
of  Rome,  therefore,  like  the  common  people  of  Athens 
nearly  two  hundred  years  before  this,  demanded  that 
the  laws  should  be  made  public.  After  a  long  struggle 
the  senate  yielded.     Ten  men  {decemvirs)  were  appointed 

*  Property  at  that  early  date  consisted  almost  entirely  of  land  and  cattle.  The 
Latin  word  lor  money,  pecunia  (cattle),  indicates  this  ancient  identity. 

t  Spurius  was  tlie  author  of  the  famous  League  of  the  Bomatis,  Latins,  and  Her- 
nicaris.  by  means  of  which  the  .^Eqiiians  and  Volscians  were  Ion:,'  held  in  check. 
The  men  of  the  Latin  League  fought  side  by  side  until  after  the  Gallic  invasion. 


'tKUS    only    C.-„M    1    MAKE    THEE    FREE."     (See  page  27.) 


451  B.  C]  THE     POLITICAL     III  S  T  0  K  Y .  27 

to  revise  and  publish  the  laws.  Meanwhile  the  regular 
government  of  consuls  and  tribunes  was  suspended.  The 
decemvirs  did  their  work  well,  and  compiled  ten  tables 
of  laws  that  were  acceptable.  Their  year  of  office  having 
expired,  a  second  body  of  decemvirs  was  chosen  to  write  the 
rest  of  the  laws.  The  senate,  finding  them  favorable  to  the 
plebeians,  forced  the  decemvirs  to  resign ;  introduced  into 
the  two  remaining  tables  regulations  obnoxious  to  the  com- 
mon people;  and  then  endeavored  to  restore  the  consular 
government  without  the  tribuneship.  The  plebs  a  second 
time  seceded  to  the  Sacred  Mount,  and  the  senate  was  forced 
to  reinstate  the  tribunes.* 

The  Laws  of  the  Twelve  Tables  remained  as  the 
grau'l  result  of  the  decemviral  legislation.  They  were 
engraved  on  blocks  of  wood  or  ivory,  and  hung  up  in  the 

*  The  account  of  this  transaction  given  in  Livy's  History  is  doubtless  largely 
jegeiiilary.  Tin-  story  runs  as  follows  :  Three  ambassadors  were  appointed  to  visit 
Ailiins  (tliis  was  during  the  "Age  of  Pericles  "),  and  examine  the  laws  of  Solon.  On 
tli'ir  return  the  decemvirs  were  chosen.  They  were  to  be  supreme,  and  the  consuls, 
tribunes,  etc.,  resigned.  The  new  rulers  did  admirably  during  one  term,  and  com- 
pleted ten  tables  of  excellent  laws  that  were  adopted  by  the  assembly  of  centuries. 
Decemvirs  were  therefore  chosen  for  a  second  term.  Appius  Claudius  was  the  most 
popular  of  the  first  body  of  decemvirs,  and  the  only  one  re-olected.  Now,  all  was 
quickly  cliang.-d  :  the  ten  men  became  at  once  odious  tyrants,  and  Appius  Claudius 
chief  of  all.  Eai-h  of  the  decemvirs  was  attended  by  twelve  lictors,  bearing  the 
f  i^ccs  with  tlir  axes  wherever  he  went  in  public.  Two  new  tables  of  oppressive  laws, 
confirming  the  patricians  in  their  hated  privileges,  were  added  to  the  former  tables. 
When  tlic  year  expired  the  decemvirs  callel  no  new  election,  and  held  their  oftice  in 
defiance  of  the  senate  and  tin'  people.  Ni>  man's  life  was  safe,  and  many  leading 
persons  fled  from  Rome.  The  crisis  soon  came.  One  day,  seeing  a  beautiful  maiden, 
Ihe  daughter  of  a  plebeian  named  Virgiiiiu-<,  crossing  the  Forum,  Claudius  resolved 
to  mike  her  his  own.  So  he  directed  a  client  to  seize  her  on  the  charge  that  she  was 
the  child  of  one  of  his  slaves,  and  then  to  bring  the  case  before  the  decemvirs  for 
trial.  Claudius,  of  course, decided  in  favor  of  his  client.  Tliereui>on  Virginius  drew 
his  danirhier  one  side  from  the  ju(l:,Tneiit--eit  as  if  to  bid  her  farewell.  Suddenly 
catching  up  a  butcher's  knife  from  a  block  near  by,  he  plunged  it  into  his  daughter's 
heart,  crying,  "  Thu»  only  can  I  make  thee  free  I  "  Then  brandishing  the  red  blide, 
he  hastened  to  the  Gimp  and  roused  Ihe  soldiers,  who  marched  to  the  city,  breathing 
vengeance.  As  over  the  body  of  the  injured  Lncretia,  so  n'.'ain  over  the  corpse  of  the 
hpDtlesH  Virginia  the  populace  swonr  that  Rome  should  be  fne.  The  pli-beians  flocked 
out  once  more  to  the  Sacred  Mount.  The  decemvirs  w<re  forcd  to  rch-ign.  The 
tribunes  and  consuls  were  restored  lo  power.  Appius,  in  rlespair.  committed  suicide. 
(Tlie  ver-ion  of  this  storv  given  in  the  text  above  is  tUat  of  Ibue,  the  great  Oerman 
critic,  in  his  new  work  on  Early  liuine.) 


28  ROME.  [451  B.C. 

Forum,  where  all  could  read  them.  Henceforth  they  con- 
stituted the  foundation  of  the  written  law  of  Rome,  and 
every  school-boy,  as  late  as  Cicero's  time,  learned  them  by 
heart. 

Continued  Triumph  of  the  Plebs. — Step  by  step  the 
plebeians  pushed  their  demand  for  equal  privileges  with 
the  patricians.  First,  the  Valerian  and  Horatian  decrees 
(449  B.  c),  so  called  from  the  consuls  who  prepared  them, 
made  the  resolutions  j)asscd  by  the  plebeians  in  the  assembly 
of  the  tribes  binding  equally  upon  the  patricians.  Next, 
the  Cannleian  decree  (445  b.  c.)  abolished  the  law  against 
intermarriage.  The  patricians,  finding  that  the  plebeians 
were  likely  to  get  hold  of  the  consulship,  compromised  by  abol- 
ishing that  office,  and  by  choosing,  through  the  assembly  of 
centuries,  from  patricians  and  plebeians  alike,  three  military 
tribunes  with  consular  powers.  But  the  patricians  did  not 
act  in  good  faith,  and  by  innumerable  arts  managed  to  cir- 
cumvent the  plebs,  so  that  during  the  next  fifty  years  (until 
400  B.  c.)  there  were  twenty  elections  of  consuls  instead  of 
military  tribunes,  and  when  military  tribunes  were  chosen 
they  were  always  patricians.  Meanwhile  the  patricians  also 
secured  the  appointment  of  censors,  who  were  to  be  chosen 
from  their  ranks  exclusively,  and  who,  besides  taking  the 
census,  were  to  classify  the  people  and  exercise  a  general 
supervision  over  their  morals.  So  vindictive  was  the  struggle 
now  going  on,  that  the  nobles  did  not  shrink  from  murder 
to  remove  a  promising  plebeian  candidate.*     But  the  plebs 

*  Thug  the  Fabii,  a  powerful  patrician  house  (one  of  the  consuls  for  seven  succes- 
sive j'ears  was  a  Fabius"),  having  taken  the  side  of  the  plebs,  and  fluding  that  they 
could  not  thereafter  live  in  peace  at  Rome,  left  the  city  and  founded  an  outpost  on 
the  Cremera,  below  Veil,  where  they  could  still  serve  their  country.  This  little  body 
of  three  hundred  and  six  soldiers — including  the  Fabii,  their  clients  and  dependants — 
sustained  for  two  years  the  full  brunt  of  the  Veientine  War.  At  length  they  were 
enticed  into  an  ambuscade,  and  all  were  slain  except  one  little  boy,  the  ancestor  of 
the  Fabius  afterward  so  famous.  During  the  massacre  the  consular  army  was  near 
by,  but  patrician  hate  would  not  permit  a  rescue. 

Again,  during  a  severe  famine  at  Rome  (440  b.  c),  a  rich  plebeian,  uamed  Spurius 


867  B.  c.j 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  20 


held  firm,  and  finally  secured  the  famous  Licinian  Rogation 
(367  B.C.),  which  ordered, — ■ 

"  I.  That,  in  Q&'d  of  debts  on  which  interest  had  been  met,  the  sum  of  the  interest 
paid  should  be  deductt'd  from  the  principal,  and  the  remainder  become  due  in  three 
eucce.-sive  years.  This  bankrupt  law  was  designed  to  aid  the  poor,  now  overwhelmed 
with  del)t,  and  so  in  the  power  of  the  rich  creditor. 

U.  That  no  citizen  should  hold  more  than  five  hundred  jugera  (about  three  hun- 
dred and  twenty  acresi  of  the  public  land,  and  should  not  feed  on  the  public  pastures 
more  than  a  limited  number  of  cattle,  under  penalty  of  fine. 

lU.  That  henceforth  consuls,  not  consular  tribunes,  should  be  elected,  and  that 
one  of  the  two  consuls  must  be  plebeian. 

rV.  That  instead  of  two  patricians  being  chosen  to  keep  the  Sibylline  books,  there 
should  be  ten  men,  taken  from  both  orders." 

For  years  after  its  passage  the  patricians  struggled  to  prc- 
yent  the  decree  from  going  into  effect.  But  the  common 
people  finally  won.  They  never  lost  the  ground  they  had 
gained,  and  secured,  in  rapid  succession,  the  dictatorship,  the 
censorship,  the  prastorship,  and  (300  B.  c.)  the  right  to  be 
pontiff  and  angiir.  Rome,  at  last,  nearly  two  centuries 
after  the  republic  began,  possessed  a  democratic  govern- 
ment. "Civil  concord,"  says  Weber,  "to  Avhich  a  temple 
was  dedicated  at  this  time,  brought  Avith  it  a  period  of  civic 
v-irtue  and  heroic  greatness." 

Foreign  Wars. — The  fall  of  the  monarchy  left  Rome  in 
weakness,  llcr  old  supremacy  over  Latiuin  was  gone,  and 
often,  while  the  long  and  fierce  struggle  which  we  have 
just  considered  was  going  on  within  her  walls,  her  armies 
were  fighting  without,  sometimes  for  the  very  existence  of 
the  city.    There  was  a  constant  succession  of  wars*  with 

Miellu-",  Holrl  grain  to  the  poor  at  a  very  low  r.ntc.  The  patricians,  flnding  that  he 
wa.-*  likily  to  be  a  Hucc<rsHful  candidate  for  office,  accused  him  of  wishing  to  be  king, 
and  as  he  refused  to  appear  before  his  enemies  for  trial,  Ahala,  the  master  of 
horse,  slew  1dm  in  the  Forum,  with  bin  own  hand. 

•  Variou-*  beautiful  legend-"  duster  around  these  eventful  wars,  and  they  have 
attained  almost  the  dignity,  though  we  cannot  tell  how  much  they  contain  of  the 
triitli,of  hl-<lory. 

CoRioLAinJs.— VVhIlo  the  Rt^imanH  were  besieging  Corioli,  the  Volsclans  made  a 
sally,  but  wen-  defeated.  In  the  eagerness  of  the  pursuit.  Cains  Mnrcius  followed  the 
enemy  inside  ihe  gate's,  which  were  closed  upon  him.  But  with  his  good  sword  he 
hewed  his  way  hack,  and  let  in  the  Romans.    So  the  city  was  taken,  and  the  hero 


dO 


BOME. 


[390  B.  C. 


the  Latins,  ^quians,  Volscians,  Etruscans,  Veientes,  and 
Samnites. 

The  Gallic  Invasion. — In  the  midst  of  these  contests  a 
horde  of  Gauls  crossed  the  Apennines,  and  spread  hke  a 
devastating  flood  over  central  Italy.  Eome  was  taken,  and 
nearly  all  the  city  burned  (390  B.C.).  The  invaders  con- 
received  the  name  Coriolanns.  Afterward  there  was  a  famine  at  Eome,  and  grain 
arriving  from  Sicily,  Caius  would  not  sell  any  to  the  plcbs  unless  they  would  submit 
to  the  patricians.  Thereupon  the  tribunes  sought  to  bring  him  to  trial,  but  he  fled 
and  took  refuge  among  the  Volsci.  Soon  after,  he  returned  at  the  head  of  a  groat 
army  and  laid  siege  to  Rome.  The  city  was  in  peril.  As  a  final  resort,  his  mother, 
wife,  and  children,  with  many  of  the  chief  women,  clad  in  the  deepest  mourning, 
went  forth  and  fell  at  his  feet.  Unable  to  resist  their  entreaties,  Coriolanus  ex- 
claimed, "  Mother,  thou  hast  saved  Eome,  but  lost  thy  son."  Having  given  the  order 
to  retreat,  he  is  said  to  have  been  slain  by  the  angry  Volsci. 


CINCI.NNATUS   RECEIVING   THE   DICTATORbHlP. 


CiNciKNATUS. — One  day  news  came  that  the  ^quians  had  surrounded  the  consul 
Minucius  ami  his  army  in  a  deep  valley,  whence  they  could  not  escape.  There  seemed 
uo  one  ill  Eome  tit  to  meet  this  emergency  except  Titus  Quinctius,  surnamed  Cincin- 
natus  or  the  Ciu'ly-haired,  who  was  now  declared  dictator.    The  officers  who  went  to 


390  B.C.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  3l 

sented  to  retire  only  on  the  payment  of  a  heavy  ransom. 
So  deep  an  impression  was  made  upon  the  Romans  by  the 
size,  strength,  courage,  and  enormous  number  of  these  bar- 
barians that  they  thenceforth  called  a  war  with  the  Gauls  a 
ttnnult,  and  kept  in  the  treasury  a  special  fund  for  such  a 
catastrophe. 

The  final  effect  of  all  these  wars  was  beneficial  to  Eome. 
The  plebeians,  who  formed  the  strength  of  her  army, 
frequently  carried  their  point  against  the  patricians  by 
refusing  to  fight  until  they  got  their  rights.  These  long 
struggles,  too,  matured  the  Roman  energy,  and  developed 

annonnce  his  appointment  found  him  plowing  on  his  little  farm  of  four  acres, 
which  he  tilled  himself.  He  called  for  his  toga,  that  he  might  receive  the  commands 
of  the  senate  with  due  respect,  when  he  was  at  once  hailed  dictator.  Kepairin"  to 
the  city,  he  as.«em bled  fresh  troops,  bidding  cuch  man  carry  twelve  wooden  stakes. 
That  very  night  he  surrounded  the  M  luians,  dug  a  ditch,  and  made  a  palisade  about 
their  camp.  Minucius  hearing  the  Koman  war-cry,  rushed  up  and  fell  upon  the 
enemy  with  all  his  might.  When  day  broke,  the  .iEquians  found  ihemselves  hemmed 
in,  and  were  forced  to  surrender  and  to  pass  under  the  yoke.  Cincinnatus,  on  his 
return,  was  awarded  a  golden  crown.  Having  saved  his  country,  he  resigned  his 
office  and  went  back  to  his  plow  aj;aiu,  content  with  the  quiet  of  his  rustic  home. 

The  siege  op  Veii— the  Troy  of  Roman  legend — lasted  ten  yeara.  Before  that 
the  Roman  wars  consisted  mainly  of  mere  forays  into  an  enemy's  country.  Now  the 
troops  remained  summer  and  winter,  and,  for  the  first  time,  received  regular  pay.  In 
the  seventh  year  of  the  siege.  Lake  Albanus,  though  in  the  heat  of  summer,  over- 
flowed its  banks.  The  Delphic  oraci  .■  declared  ihat  Veii  would  not  fall  until  the  lake 
was  dried  up:  whereupon  the  Roman  army  cut  a  tunnel  through  the  solid  rock  to 
convey  the  surplus  water  over  the  neighboring  fields.  Still  the  city  did  not  yield. 
Camillus  having  been  a[>poinIed  dictator,  dug  a  passage  under  the  wall.  One  day  the 
king  of  Veii  was  about  to  offiT  a  sacritlce,  when  the  soothsayer  told  him  that  the  city 
fhonld  belong  to  him  who  slew  the  victim.  The  Romans,  who  were  beneath,  heard 
these  words,  and,  forcing  their  way  through,  hastened  to  the  shrine,  and  Camillus 
completed  the  sacriflee.  The  gales  were  thrown  open,  and  the  Romau  army  rushing 
in,  overi)owered  all  opposition. 

The  city  op  Falerii  had  aided  the  Veionfcs.  When  Camillus,  bent  on  revenge, 
appeared  bcifore  the  place,  a  schoolmaster  secretly  brought  Into  l\w  Roman  camp  his 
pupils,  the  children  f)f  the  chief  men  of  Falerii.  Camillu-,  scorning  to  receive  the 
traitor,  tied  his  hands  behind  his  back,  ami  giving  whips  to  the  boys,  b:ide  them  flog 
their  master  back  into  the  city.  Tli'-  Kaleiians,  moved  by  such  magnanimity,  sur- 
rendered to  the  Romans.  Camillus  enter<;d  Rome  in  a  chariot  drawn  by  white  horses. 
and  having  his  face  col  > red  with  vermili(m.  as  was  the  custom  when  the  gods  were 
borne  In  procession.  Unfortunately,  ln'  offended  the  plebs  by  ordering  each  man  to 
restore  one-tenth  of  his  booty  for  an  ofleritig  to  A|>ollo.  He  was  accused  of  pride, 
and  of  appropriating  to  his  own  use  thr;  bronze  gates  of  Veii.  Forced  to  leave  the 
city,  he  wont  out  praying  that  Rome  might  yet  need  his  help.  That  time  soon  lame. 
Five  years  after,  the  GanN  defeated  the  Romans  at  the 

RiVLii  AiAAX.     bo  great  wa.s  the  slaughter  that  the  anniversary  of  the  battle  wa« 


32  ROME.  [390  B.  c. 

the  Roman  character  iu  all  its  stern,  unfeeling,  and  yet 
heroic  strength. 

After  the  Gallic  invasion  Rome  was  soon  rebuilt.  The 
surrounding  nations  having  suffered  still  more  severely  from 
the  northern  barbarians,  and  the  Gauls  being  now  looked 
upon  as  the  common  enemy  of  Italy,  Rome  came  to  be  con- 
sidered the  common  defender.  The  plebs,  in  rebuilding 
their  ruined  houses  and  buying  tools,  cattle,  and  seed,  were 
reduced  to  greater  straits  than  ever  before  (unless  after  the 
expulsion  of  the  Etruscan  kings) ;  and  to  add  to  their  bur- 
dens a  double  tribute  was  imposed  by  the  goyernment,  in 

henceforth  a  black  day  in  the  Roman  calendar.  The  wreck  of  the  army  took  refuge 
in  Veil.  The  people  of  Rome  fled  for  their  lives.  The  young  patricians  garrisoned 
the  citadel  ;  and  the  gray-haired  senators,  devoting  themselves  as  an  offering  to  the 
god-,  put  OR  their  robes,  and,  sitting  in  their  ivory-chairs  of  magistracy,  awaited 
death.  The  barbarians,  hurrying  through  the  deserted  streets,  at  length  came  to  the 
Forum.  For  a  moment  they  stood  amazed  at  the  sight  of  those  solemn  figures.  Then 
one  of  the  Gauls  put  out  his  hand  reverently  to  stroke  the  white  beard  of  an  aged 
senator,  when  the  indignant  Roman,  revolting  at  the  profanation,  felled  him  with  his 
staff.    The  spell  was  broken,  and  the  senators  were  ruthlessly  massacred. 

The  siege  of  the  Capitol  lasted  for  months.  One  night  a  party  of  Gauls  clambered 
up  the  steep  ascent,  and  one  of  them  reached  the  highest  ledge  of  the  rock.  Just 
then  Some  sacred  geese  in  the  temple  of  Juno  began  to  cry  and  flap  their  wings. 
Marcus  Maniius,  aroused  by  the  noise,  rushed  out,  saw  the  peril,  and  dashed  the 
foremost  Gaul  over  the  precipice.  Other  Romans  rallied  to  his  aid,  and  the  imminent 
ptril  was  arrested.  The  Gauls,  becoming  weary  of  the  siege,  offered  to  accept  a  ran- 
som of  a  thousand  pounds  of  gold.  This  sum  was  raised  from  the  temple-treasures 
and  the  ornaments  of  the  Roman  women.  As  they  were  weighing  the  articles,  the 
R  jmans  complained  of  the  scales  being  false,  when  Brennus,  the  Gallic  chief,  threw 
in  his  heavy  sword,  insolently  exclaiming,  "Woe  to  the  vanquished!"  At  that 
moment  Camillus  strode  in  at  the  head  of  an  army,  crying,  "  Rome  is  to  be  bought 
with  iron,  not  goldl  ",  drove  out  the  enemy,  and  not  a  man  escaped  to  tell  how  low 
the  city  had  fallen  on  that  eventful  day.  When  the  Romans  returned  to  their  devas- 
lated  homes  they  were  at  first  of  a  mind  to  leave  Rome,  and  occupy  the  empty  dwell- 
ings of  Veil.  But  a  lucky  omen  prevailed  on  them  to  remain.  Just  as  a  senator  was 
rising  to  speak,  a  centurion  relieving  guard  gave  the  command,"  Plant  your  colors; 
this  is  the  best  place  to  stay  in."  The  senators  rushed  forth,  shouting,  "  The  gods 
have  spoken ;  we  obey  I "  The  people  caught  the  enthusiasm,  and  cried  out,  "  Rome 
forever  1 " 

Marcus  Maniius,  who  saved  the  Capitol,  befriended  the  people  in  the  distress 
which  followed  the  Gallic  invasion.  One  day,  seeing  a  soldier  dragged  off  to  prison 
for  debt,  he  paid  the  amount  and  released  the  m.an,  at  the  same  time  swearing  that 
while  he  had  any  property  left,  no  Roman  should  be  imprisoned  for  debt.  The  patri- 
cians, jealous  of  his  influence  among  the  plebs,  accused  him  of  wishing  to  become 
king.  He  was  brought  to  trial  in  the  Campus  Martius  ;  but  the  hero  pointed  to  the 
spoils  of  thirty  warriors  whom  he  had  slain  ;  forty  distinctions  won  in  battle ;  hi^ 
iu.iumcrable  scars ;  and,  above  all,  to  the  Capitol  he  had  saved.    His  enemies  fiudii.^ 


396  B.  C]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  33 

order  to  replace  the  sacred  gold  used  to  buy  off  the  Gauls. 
But  this  very  misery  soon  led  to  the  Licinian  Rogations,  and 
so  to  the  growth  of  liberty.  Thus  the  plebs  got  a  consul 
twenty-four  years  after  the  Gauls  left,  just  as  they  got  the 
tribunes  fifteen  years  after  the  Etruscans  left ;  the  succeed- 
ing ruin  both  times  being  followed  by  a  triumph  of 
democracy. 

The  capture  of  Veil  (396  B.C.)  gave  the  Romans  a  foothold 
beyond  the  Tiber  ;  and,  only  three  years  after  the  Gallic  in- 
vasion, four  new  tribes,  carved  out  of  the  Veientine  land, 
were  added  to  the  republic. 

a  conviction  in  that  place  impossible,  adjourned  to  a  grove  where  the  Capitol  could 
not  be  ceen,  and  ihere  the  man  who  had  saved  Rome  was  sentenced  to  death,  and  at 
once  hurled  from  the  Tarpeian  Rock. 

QtTiNTua  CuRTifs.— Not  lon^'  after  the  Licinian  "locations  were  passed,  Rome 
was  afflicted  by  a  pla;iue.  in  which  Camillas  died  ;  by  an  overtlow  of  the  Tiber  ;  and 
by  an  earthquake,  which  opened  a  great  chasm  in  the  Forum.  The  augurs  de- 
clared that  the  gulf  would  not  close  until  there  were  cast  into  it  the  most  precious 
things.  Whereupon  Quiutus  Ciirtius  mounted  his  horse,  and  riding  at  full  speed, 
leaped  into  the  abyss,  declaring  ihat  Rome's  best  riches  were  her  brave  men. 

The  Battle  op  Mount  Vesuvius  (340  b.  c.)  was  the  chief  event  of  the  Latin 
War.  Prior  to  this  enirageraeiit  the  consul  Manlius  ordered  that  no  one  should  quit 
his  post  under  pain  of  death.  But  his  own  son,  provoked  by  the  taunts  of  a  Tusculan 
officer,  left  the  ranks,  slew  his  opponent  in  single  combat,  and  brought  the  bloody 
spoils  to  his  father.  The  stern  parent  ordered  him  to  be  at  once  beheaded  by  the 
lictor,  in  the  presence  of  the  army.  During  the  battle  which  followed,  the  Romans 
were  on  the  point  of  yieldint;,  when  Decius,  the  plebeian  cons;il,  who  had  promised, 
in  case  of  defeat,  to  offer  himself  to  ihe  infernal  gods,  fulfilled  his  vow.  Calling  the 
pontifex  niaslmus,  he  repeated  the  form  devoting  Ihe  foe  and  himself  to  death,  and 
then  wrapping  his  to^'a  about  him  leaped  upon  his  horse,  and  dashed  into  the  thickest 
of  the  flghf.  His  death  inspired  the  Romans  with  fresh  hope,  and  scarce  one-fourth 
of  the  Latins  escaped  from  that  bloody  field. 

Battle  of  the  Caudine  Forks.— During  the  second  Samnlte  War  there  arose 
among  the  Suniniies  a  famous  captain  nam(!d  Cains  Pontius.  By  a  stratagem  he  en- 
ticeil  the  Roman  array  into  the  Caudine  Forks.  High  nioiinlains  here  enclose  a  littlo 
plain,  having  at  each  end  a  pa-sage  through  a  narrow  defile.  When  the  Romans  were 
foirly  in  the  basin  the  Sainnitcs  suddenly  appealed  in  both  gorges,  and  forced  the 
consuls  to  surrender  with  four  legions.  Ponlins,  having  sent  his  prisoners  under 
the  yoke,  furnished  them  with  wagons  for  the  wounded  and  food  for  their  journey, 
and  then  reli^ased  them  on  certain  conditicms  of  peace.  The  senate  refused  to  ratify 
the  terms,  and  onlcred  the  consuls  to  be  delivered  up  to  the  Samnites,  but  diil  not 
send  back  the  soldiers.  Pontius  replied  that  if  the  senate  would  not  make  peace, 
then  it  should  place  the  army  back  in  the  Caudine  Forks.  The  Romans,  who  rarely 
scnipledaf  anycondnel  that  promi-cd  theiriidvnntage.ef)ntinued  the  war.  Bnt  when, 
twenty-nine  years  lat'T,  Pontius  was  captured  by  Fiibius  Maximus.  that  brave  Sam- 
nlte leader  was  di«g,acefully  put  to  death  as  the  triumphal  chariot  of  the  victor 
aeccndud  to  the  Capitol. 


34  ROME.  [337  B.c 

The  final  result  of  the  Latin  War  (340-338  B.C.)  was, 
in  place  of  the  old  Latin  League,*  to  merge  the  cities  of 
Latium,  one  by  one,  into  the  Roman  state. 

The  three  Samnite  Wars  (343-290  b.  c.)  occupied  half  a 
century,  save  only  brief  intervals,  and  were  most  obstinately 
contested.  The  long-doubtful  struggle  culminated  at  the 
great  battle  of  Sentinum.  Samnium  became  a  subject-ally. 
Home  was  noiv  mistress  of  central  Italy.  She  had  fairly 
entered  on  her  career  of  conquest- 
War  with  Pyrrlms  (280-276  B.C.).— The  rising  city 
next  came  into  conflict  with  the  Greek  colonies  in  southern 
Italy.  The  Romans  had  made  a  treaty  with  Tarentum, 
promising  not  to  send  ships  of  war  past  the  Lacinian  prom- 
ontory. But,  having  a  garrison  in  the  friendly  city  of  Thurii, 
the  senate  ordered  a  fleet  to  that  place ;  so  one  day,  while  the 
people  of  Tarentum  were  seated  in  their  theatre  witnessing 
a  play,  they  suddenly  saw  ten  Roman  galleys  sailing  upon 
the  forbidden  waters.  The  audience  in  a  rage  left  their 
seats,  rushed  down  to  the  shore,  manned  some  ships,  and 
pushing  out  sank  four  of  the  Roman  squadron.  The  senate 
sent  ambassadors  to  ask  satisfaction.  They  reached  Taren- 
tum, so  says  the  legend,  during  a  feast  of  Bacchus.  Postu- 
mius,  the  leader  of  the  envoys,  made  so  many  mistakes  in 
talking  Greek  that  the  people  laughed  aloud,  and,  as  he  was 
leaving,  a  buffoon  threw  mud  upon  his  white  toga.  The 
shouts  only  increased  when  Postumius,  holding  up  his  soiled 
robe,  cried,  "  This  shall  be  washed  in  torrents  of  your 
blood!"    War  was  now  inevitable.     Tarentum,  f  unable  to 

*  The  Latin  Loague  (p.  26)  was  dissolved  in  the  same  year  (338  b.  c.)  with  the 
battle  of  Ch^rouea. 

+  The  Greek  colonists  retained  the  pride,  though  they  had  lost  the  simplicity,  of 
their  ancestors.  They  were  effeminate  to  the  last  degree.  "  At  Tarentum  there  were 
not  enough  days  in  the  calendar  on  which  to  hold  the  festivals,  and  at  Syharis  they 
killed  all  the  cocks  lest  they  should  disturb  the  inhabitants  in  their  sleep." 


280  B.C.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  35 

resist  Lhe  "  barbarians  of  the  Tiber,"  appealed  to  the  mother- 
country  for  help.  Pyrrhus,  king  of  Epirus,  came  over  with 
twenty-five  thousand  soldiers  and  twenty  elephants.  For 
the  first  time  the  Roman  legion  (p.  81)  met  the  dreaded 
Macedonian  phalanx.  In  vain  the  Roman  soldiers  sought 
to  break  through  the  bristling  hedge,  with  their  swords 
hewiug  off  the  pikes,  and  with  their  hands  bearing  them  to 
the  ground.  To  complete  their  discomfiture,  Pyrrhus 
launched  iiis  elephants  upon  their  weakened  ranks.  At 
the  sight  of  that  '-new  kind  of  oxen,"  the  Roman  cavalry 
fled  in  dismay. 

Pyrrhus  won  a  second  battle  in  the  same  way.  He  then 
crossed  over  into  Sicily  to  help  the  Greeks  against  the  Car- 
thaginians. When  he  returned,  two  years  later,  while  at- 
tempting to  surprise  the  Romans  by  a  night  attack,  his 
troops  lost  their  way,  and  the  next  morning,  when  weary 
with  the  march,  they  were  assailed  by  the  enemy.  The 
once-dreaded  elephants  were  frightened  back  by  fire-brands, 
and  driven  through  the  Grecian  lines.  Pjn'rhus  was  defeated, 
and,  having  lost  nearly  all  his  army,  returned  to  Epirus.* 
The  (}reek  colonies,  deprived  of  his  help,  were  subjugated  in 
rapid  succession. 

*  Many  romantic  iticid>-nts  are  told  of  this  war.  As  Pyrrhus  walked  ovei-  th3 
battli.'-field  and  caw  llie  Konmn;'  lyinirail  witli  wounds  in  front  and  tlioircounii'iiances 
s<tern  in  fleath.  hR  cried  out,  "With  such  f-o!<li<rn  I  could  conquer  the  world  I  "— 
Cinea.",  whom  Pyrrhur*  sent  to  Rome  as  an  ambassador,  returned,  saying,  "  the  city  was 
like  a  temple  of  the  gods,  and  the  senate  an  assembly  of  kings."— Fabricius,  who 
came  to  Pyrrlius's  camp  on  a  similar  mission,  was  a  sturdy  Roman,  who  worked  his 
own  farm,  and  loved  integrity  and  honor  more  than  auL'lit  else,  save  his  country. 
The  Grecian  leader  was  surprised  to  find  in  this  haiicbty  barbarian  that  same  greats 
ncH.sof  soul  that  had  once  made  the  Hellenic  character  so  famous.  n(^  offered  him 
"  more  gold  than  Rome  had  ever  possessed  "  if  lie  would  enter  his  service,  but  Fabri- 
cius  replied  that  "  Poverty,  with  a  good  name,  is  better  than  wealth."  .Afterward 
the  physician  of  Pyrrhus  offereil  to  pr)ison  lhe  king.  But  the  indignant  Roman  sent 
back  the  traitor  in  irons.  Pyrrhus,  not  lo  be  outrlf)ne  in  generosity,  set  free  all  his 
captives,  sayini,',  that  "  it  was  easier  to  turn  the  sun  from  its  course  than  Fabricius 
from  the  jialh  of  honor."— Dentatus,  the  consul  wl:o  defeated  Pyrrhus,  was  offered 
by  the  grateful  senate  a  tract  of  land.  lie  replied  that  be  already  liad  seven  acres, 
and  that  was  sufUcieut  for  any  citizen. 


36  ROME.  [265  BC. 

Rome  loas  notv  Mistress  of  penmsular  Italy.  She  was 
ready  to  begin  her  grand  course  of  foreign  conquest. 

The  Roman  Grovernment  in  Italy  was  that  of  one  city 
supreme  over  many  cities.  Rome  retained  the  rights  of  de- 
claring war,  making  peace,  and  coining  money,  but  permitted 
her  subjects  to  manage  tlieir  local  affairs.  All  were  required 
to  furnish  soldiers  to  fight  under  the  eagles  of  Eome.  There 
were  three  classes  of  inhabitants,  Roman  citizens,  Latins, 
and  Italians.  The  Roman  citizens  were  those  who  occupied 
the  territory  of  Rome  proper,  including  others  upon  whom 
this  franchise  had  been  bestowed.  They  had  the  right  to 
meet  in  the  Forum  to  enact  laws,  elect  consuls,  etc.  The 
Latins  had  only  a  few  of  the  rights  of  citizenship,  and  the 
Italians  or  allies  none.  As  the  power  of  Rome  gi-ew,  Roman 
citizenship  acquired  a  might  and  a  meaning  {Acts  xxii.  25  ; 
xxiii.  37  ;  xxv.  11-21)  which  made  it  eagei'ly  sought  by  every 
person  and  city ;  it  was  constantly  held  out,  as  a  reward  for 
special  service  and  devotion,  that  the  Italian  could  be  made 
a  Latin,  and  the  Latin  a  Roman. 

The  Romans  were  famous  road-builders,  and  the  great 
national  highways  which  they  constructed  throughout  their 
territories  did  much  to  tie  them  together  (p.  92).  By 
their  use  Rome  kept  up  constant  communication  with  all 
parts  of  her  possessions,  and  could  quickly  send  her  legions 
wherever  wanted. 

A  portion  of  the  land  in  each  conquered  state  was  given 
to  Roman  colonists.  They  became  the  patricians  in  the 
new  city,  the  old  inhabitants  counting  only  as  plebs.  Thus 
little  Romes  were  built  all  over  Italy.  The  natives  looked 
up  to  these  settlers,  and,  hoping  to  obtain  similar  rights, 
quickly  adopted  their  customs,  institutions,  and  language. 
So  the  entire  j^eninsula  rapidly  assumed  a  uniform  national 
character. 


264  B.C.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  37 


THE    PU^IO*    WARS. 

Carthage  (p.  160)  was  now  the  great  naval  and  colonizing 
power  of  the  western  Mediterranean.  She  had  established 
some  settlements  in  western  Sicily,  and  these  were  almost 
constantly  at  war  with  the  Greeks  on  the  eastern  coast.  As 
Sicily  lay  between  Carthage  and  Italy,  it  was  natural  that 
two  such  aggressive  powers  as  the  Carthaginians  and  the  Eo- 
mans  should  come  to  blows  on  that  island. 

First  Punic  War  (364-241  b.  c). — Some  pirates  seized 
Messana,  the  nearest  city  to  Italy,  and,  being  threatened  by 
the  Carthaginians  and  the  SjTacusans,  asked  liel])  of  Rome, 
in  order  to  retain  their  ill-gotten  possessions.  On  this 
wretched  pretext  an  army  was  sent  into  Sicily.  The  Car- 
thaginians were  driven  back,  and  Hicro,  king  of  Syi'acuse, 
was  forced  to  make  a  treaty  with  Eome.  Agrigentum,  an 
important  naval  depot  belonging  to  Carthage,  Avas  then  cap- 
tured, in  spite  of  a  large  army  of  mercenary  soldiers  which 
the  Carthaginians  sent  to  its  defence. 

Rome's  First  Fleet  (260i3.  c.).f — The  Eoman  senate,  not 
content  with  this  success,  was  bent  on  contesting  with  Car- 
tilage the  supremacy  of  the  sea.  One  hundred  and  thirty 
vessels  were  accordingly  built  in  sixty  days,  a  stranded 
Phoenician  galley  being  taken  as  a  model.  To  compensate 
tlie  lack  of  skilled  seamen,  the  ships  were  provided  with 
drawbridges,  so  that  coming  at  once  to  close  quarters  their 
di.sciplined  soldiers  could  ru.sh  upon  the  enemies'  deck,  and 
decide  the  contest  by  a  hand-to-hand  fight.     They  thus  beat 

•  From  punlaix,  an  adjective  derived  from  Poenl,  the  Latin  form  of  tbe  word 
Phcenicians. 

t  The  Itomann  bcijan  to  construct  a  fl'-et  as  early  as  838  b.  c,  and,  in  267,  we  read 
of  the  finestors  of  the  navy,  but  the  vesscU  were  small,  and  Rome  was  a  land-power 
until  200  B.  0. 


256  b.  C.J  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  39 

the  Carthaginians  in  two  great  nav^al  battles  within  four 
years. 

Romans  Cross  the  Sea.— Under  Eegulus  the  Romans  then 
crossed  the  Mediterranean,  and  "  carried  the  war  into  Africa." 
The  natives,  weary  of  the  oppressive  rule  of  the  Carthaginians, 
welcomed  their  deliverers.  Carthage  seemed  about  to  fall, 
when  the  presence  of  one  man  turned  the  tide.  Xanthippus, 
a  Sj)artan  general,  led  the  Carthaginians  to  victory,  destroyed 
the  Roman  army,  and  captured  Regulus.* 

After  this  the  contest  dragged  on  for  several  years ;  but  a 
signal  victory  near  Panorm  us,  in  Sicily,  gave  the  Romans 
the  ascendency  in  that  island,  and  finally  a  great  naval  defeat 
off  the  ^gusa  Islands  cost  the  Carthaginians  the  empire  of 
the  sea.  Carthage  was  forced  to  give  up  Sicily,  and  pay 
three  thousand  two  hundi-ed  talents  of  silver  (about  four 
million  dollars)  toward  the  expenses  of  the  war.  The 
temple  of  Janus  was  shut  for  the  first  time  since  the  days 
of  Numa. 

Rome's  first  province  was  Sicily.  This  was  governed,  like 
all  the  possessions  which  she  afterward  acquired  outside  of 
Italy,  by  magistrates  sent  each  year  from  Rome.  The  people, 
being  made  not  allies  but  subjects,  were  required  to  pay  an 
annual  tribute. 

•  It  is  said  that  Recrulus,  while  at  the  height  of  his  Biiccess,  asked  pcrmifpion  to 
return  home  to  his  little  farm,  as  a  slave  had  nin  away  with  the  tools,  and  his  family 
was  likely  to  unffer  with  want  diirinsj  his  absence.  After  his  capture,  theCurlha- 
giniauB  sent  him  to  Rome  with  proposalH  of  peace,  making  him  swear  to  return  in 
cace  the  conditions  were  not  accfpted.  On  his  arrival,  he  refused  to  enter  the  city, 
saying  that  he  was  no  longera  Roman  citizen,  but  only  a Caiihaginian  slave.  Having 
stated  the  terms  of  the  proposed  peace,  to  the  ainuzeinent  of  all,  he  urged  their  re- 
jection, as  unworthy  of  the  glory  and  honor  of  Rome.  Then,  without  visiting  his 
home,  he  tunied  away  from  weeping  wife  and  children,  and  went  back  to  his  prison 
again.  The  enraged  Carthaginians  cutoff  liis  eyelids,  and  exposed  him  to  the  burn- 
ing rays  of  a  tropic  sun  ;  and  then  thrust  him  into  abarrel  studded  with  sharj)  nails. 
80  perished  this  martyr  to  his  word  and  his  country. — Historic  research  throws 
doubt  on  the  truth  of  this  instance  of  I'unic  cruc^Ity,  and  asserts  that  the  story  was 
invented  to  excuse  the  barbarity  with  wliicli  the  wife  of  Regulus  treati;d  some  Car- 
ibaginian  ca|>tives  who  fell  into  her  handn  ;  but  the  name  uf  Regulus  livea  at)  the  per* 
BODiflcation  of  sincerity  and  patriotic  devotiua. 


Second  Punic  War  (218-201  b.c). — During  the  ensuing 
peace  of  twenty-three  years,  Hamilcar  (surnamed  Barca, 
lightning),  the  great  statesman  and  general  of  Carthage, 
built  up  an  empire  in  southern  Spain,  and  trained  an  army 
for  a  new  struggle  with  Eome.  He  hated  that  city  with  a 
perfect  hatred.  When  he  left  home  for  Spain,  he  took  with 
him  his  son  Hannibal,  a  boy  nine  years  old,  having  first 
made  him  swear  at  the  altar  of  Baal  always  to  be  the  enemy 
of  the  Romans.  That  childish  oath  was  never  forgotten, 
and  Hannibal,  like  his  father,  had  but  one  purpose — to 
humble  his  country's  rival.  "When  twenty-six  years  of  age, 
he  was  made  commander-in-chief  of  the  Carthaginian  army. 
Pushing  the  Punic  power  northward,  he  captured  Saguntum. 
As  that  city  was  her  ally,  Rome  promptly  declared  war  against 
Carthage.*  On  the  receipt  of  this  welcome  news,  Hannibal, 
with  the  daring  of  genius,  resolved  to  scale  the  Alps,  and 
carry  the  contest  into  Italy. 

Invasion  of  Ifahj. — In  the  spring  of  the  year  218  B.  c,  he 
set  out  f  from  New  Carthage.  Through  hostile  tribes,  over 
the  swift  Rhone,  he  pressed  forward  to  the  foot  of  the  Alps. 
Here  dangers  multiplied.  The  mountaineers  rolled  down 
rocks  upon  his  column,  as  it  wearily  toiled  up  the  steep  ascent. 
Snow  blocked  the  way.  At  times  the  crack  of  a  whip  would 
bring  down  an  avalanche  from  the  impending  heights.  The 
men  and  horses  slipped  on  the  sloping  ice-fields,  and  slid 
over  the  precipices  into  the  awful  crevasses.  New  roads  had 
to  be  cut  through  the  solid  rock  by  hands  benumbed  with 

*  An  embassy  came  to  Carthage  demanding  that  Hannibal  should  be  surrendered. 
This  being  refused,  M.  Fabius,  folding  up  his  toga  as  if  it  contained  something, 
exclaimed,  "  I  bring  you  peace  or  war;  take  which  you  will  1"  The  Carthaginians 
answered,  "  Give  us  which  you  wish  !  "  Shaking  open  his  toga,  the  Roman  haughtily 
replied,  "  I  give  you  war  1 "     "  So  let  it  be  ! "  shouted  the  assembly. 

t  Before  starting  on  this  expedition,  Hannibal  went  with  his  immediate  attendants 
to  Gades,  and  offered  sacrifice  in  the  temples  for  the  success  of  the  great  work  to 
which  he  had  been  dedicated  eighteen  years  before,  and  to  which  he  had  been  looking 
forward  so  long. 


218  B.C.] 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY. 


41 


cold  and  weakened  with  hunger.  When  at 
last  he  reached  the  smiling  plains  of  Italy, 
only  twenty-six  thousand  men  were  left  of 
the  one  hundred  and  two  thousand  with 
whom  he  began  the  perilous  march  five 
months  before. 


One 
light 


HANMliAL    CROSSI.NG   THE   ALPS. 

Bailies  of  Trehia, 
Tra s I me'nus,  atid  Can- 
n(u. — Arriving  at  the 
river  Trehia  in  Decem- 
])('r,  ITaiinil)al  found 
the  Konians,  under 
Scmpronius,  ready  to 
dispute  his  progress, 
stuimv  morning,  he  sent  the 
Nuraidiuu    cavalry    over    to 


42  ROME.  [218  B.  C. 

make  a  feigned  attack  on  the  enemy's  camp.  The  Eomans 
fell  into  the  snare,  and  pursued  the  horsemen  back  across 
the  river.  AVhen  the  legions,  stiff  with  cold  and  faint 
with  hunger,  emerged  from  the  icy  waters,  they  found  the 
Carthaginian  army  drawn  up  to  receive  them.  Undismayed 
l)y  the  sight,  they  at  once  joined  battle  ;  but,  in  the  midst 
of  the  struggle,  Hannibal's  brother  Mago  fell  upon  their 
rear  with  a  body  of  men  wiiich  had  been  hidden  in  a  reedy 
i^ivine  near  by.  The  Eomans,  panic-stricken,  broke  and 
fled. 

The  fierce  Gauls  now  flocked  to  Hannibal's  camp,  and 
remained  his  active  allies  during  the  rest  of  the  war. 

The  next  year  Hannibal  moved  southward.*  One  day  in 
June,  the  consul  Flaminius  was  eagerly  pursuing  him  along 
the  banks  of  the  Lake  Trasimcnus.  Suddenly,  through  the 
mist,  the  Carthaginians  poured  down  from  the  heights,  and 
put  the  Romans  to  rout.f 

Fabius  was  now  appointed  dictator.  Keeping  on  the 
heights  where  he  could  not  be  attacked,  he  followed  Hanni- 
bal everywhere, J  cutting  off  his  supplies,  but  never  hazarding 
a  battle.  The  Eomans  became  impatient  at  seeing  their 
country  ravaged  while  their  army  remained  inactive,  and 
Varro,  the  consul,  offered  battle  on  the  plain  of  Cannw. 
Hannibal  drew  iip  the  Carthaginians  m  the  sliajio  of  a  half- 
moon  having  the  convex  side  toward  the  enemy,  and  tijjpcd 

*  In  the  low  flooded  grounds  alon<?  the  Arno  the  army  suffered  fearfully.  Hanni- 
bal himself  lost  an  eye  by  inflammation,  and,  it  was  said,  his  life  was  saved  by  the 
last  remaining  elephant,  which  carried  him  out  of  the  swamp. 

t  So  fierce  was  this  struggle  th^it  none  of  the  combatants  noticed  the  shock  of  a 
severe  earthquake  which  occurred  in  the  midst  of  the  battle. 

X  While  Hannibal  was  ravaging  the  rich  plains  of  Campania,  the  wary  Fabius 
seized  the  passes  of  the  Apennines,  through  which  Hiinnibal  must  recross  into  Sam- 
nium  with  his  booty.  The  Carthaginian  was  apparently  caught  in  the  trap.  But  his 
min.'l  was  fertile  in  devices.  Ho  fastened  torches  to  the  horns  of  two  thousand  oxen, 
and  sent  men  to  drive  them  up  the  neighboring  heights.  The  Romans  at  the  defiles 
thinking  the  Carthaginians  were  trying  to  escape  over  the  hills,  ran  to  the  defence. 
Hannibal  quickly  seized  the  passes,  and  marched  through  with  his  army. 


216  B.C.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  43 

the  horns  of  the  crescent  with  his  veteran  cavaky.  The 
massive  legions  quickly  broke  through  his  Aveak  center.  But 
as  they  pressed  forward  in  eager  pursuit,  his  terrible  horse- 
men fell  upon  their  rear.  Hemmed  in  on  all  sides,  the 
Eomans  could  neither  fight  nor  flee.  Twenty-one  tribunes, 
eighty  senators,  and  over  seventy  thousand  men  fell  in  that 
horrible  massacre.  After  the  battle,  Hannibal  sent  to  Car- 
thage a  bushel  of  gold  rings — the  ornaments  of  Eoman 
knights.  At  Eomo  all  was  dismay.  '*'  One-fifth  of  the 
citizens  able  to  bear  arms  had  fallen  within  eighteen  months, 
and  m  every  house  there  was  mourning."  All  southern  Italy, 
including  Capua,  the  city  next  in  importance  to  the  capital, 
joined  Hannibal. 

Hannibal's  Reverses. — The  tide  of  Hannibal's  victories, 
however,  ebbed  from  this  time.  The  Roman  spirit  rose  in 
the  hour  of  peril,  and,  while  struggling  at  home  for  exist- 
ence, the  senate  sent  armies  into  Sicily,  Greece,  and  Spain. 
The  Latin  cities  remained  true,  not  one  revolting  to  the  Car- 
thaginians. The  Roman  generals  had  learned  not  to  fight 
in  the  open  field,  where  Hannibal's  cavalry  and  genius  were 
so  fatal  to  them,  but  to  keep  behind  walls,  since  Hannibal 
had  no  skill  in  sieges,  and  his  army  was  too  small  to  take 
their  strongholds.  Hannibal's  brother  Hasdrubal  was  busy 
fighting  the  Romans  in  Spain,  and  could  send  him  no  aid. 
The  Carthaginians  also  were  chary  of  Hannibal,  and  refused 
liim  help. 

For  thirteen  years  longer  Hannibal  remained  in  Italy,  but 
he  was  at  last  driven  into  Bruttium — the  toe  of  the  Italian 
boot.  Never  did  his  genius  shine  more  brightly.  He  con- 
tinually sallied  out  to  protect  his  allies,  or  to  plunder  and 
devastate.  Once  ho  went  so  near  Rome  that  he  hurled  a 
javelin  over  its  walls.  Nevertheless,  and  in  spite  of  his 
efforts,  Capua  was  retaken.     Syracuse  promised  aid,  but  was 


44  HOME.  [212  B.C. 

captured  by  the  Eoman  army.*  Hasdrubal  finally  managed 
to  get  out  of  Spain  and  cross  the  Alps,  but  at  the  Metaur-us  f 
(207  B.  c.)  was  routed  and  slain.  The  first  notice  Hannibal 
had  of  his  brother's  approach  was  when  Hasdrabal's  head 
was  thrown  into  the  Carthaginian  camp.  At  the  sight  of 
this  ghastly  memorial,  Hannibal  exclaimed  :  "  Ah  Carthage, 
I  behold  thy  doom ! " 

Hannibal  Recalled. — P.  Scipio,  who  had  already  expelled 
the  Carthaginians  from  Spain,  now  carried  the  war  into 
Africa.  Carthage  was  forced  to  summon  her  great  general 
from  Italy.  He  came  to  her  defence,  but  met  the  first  defeat 
of  his  life  in  the  decisive  battle  of  Zama.  On  that  fatal  field 
the  veterans  of  the  Italian  wars  fell,  and  Hannibal  himself 
gave  up  the  struggle.  Peace  was  granted  Carthage  on  her 
paying  a  crushing  tribute,  and  agreeing  not  to  go  to  Avar 
without  the  permission  of  Rome.  Scipio  received  the  name 
Africanus,  in  honor  of  his  triumph. 

Fate  of  Hannibal. — On  the  return  of  peace,  Hannibal, 
with  singular  wisdom,  began  the  reformation  of  his  native 
city.  But  his  enemies,  by  false  representations  at  Eome, 
compelled  him  to  quit  Carthage,  and  take  refuge  at  the 
court  of  Antioehus  (p.  47).  When  at  length  his  patron 
was  at  the  feet  of  their  common  enemy,  and  no  longer  able 
to  protect  him,  Hannibal  fled  to  Bithynia,  where,  finding 
himself  still  pursued  by  the  vindictive  Eomans,  he  ended  his 

*  Th:'  siege  of  Syracuse  (214-212  b.  c.)  is  famous  for  the  genius  displayed  in  its 
defence  by  the  mathematician  Archimedes.  He  is  said  to  have  fired  the  Roman  fleet 
by  means  of  immense  burning-glasses,  and  to  have  contrived  machines  that  reaching 
huge  arms  over  the  walls,  irraspecl  and  overturned  the  galleys.  The  Romans  became 
BO  timid  that  they  would  "  flee  at  the  sight  of  a  stick  thrust  out  at  them."  When  the 
city  was  finally  taken  by  storm,  Mtrcellus  gave  orders  to  spare  Archimedes.  But  a 
soldier  rushing  into  the  philosopher's  study  found  an  old  man,  who,  not  noticing  his 
dra\vn  sword,  bade  him  "Noli  tiirbare  circulos  meos."  Enraged  by  his  indifference, 
the  Roman  slew  him  on  the  spot. 

t  This  engagement,  which  decided  ths  is«ue  of  Hannibal's  invasion  of  Italy,  is 
reckoned  among  the  most  important  in  the  history  of  the  world.  See  Creasy's  Fif- 
teen Decisive  Battles,  p.  96. 


183  B.C.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  45 

days  by  taking  poison,  which  he  carried  with  him  in  a  hollow 
ring 

Third  Punic  War  (149-146  b.  c.).— Half  a  century 
passed,  during  which  Carthage  was  slowly  recovering  her 
former  prosperity.  A  strong  party  at  Eome,  however,  was 
bent  upon  her  destruction.*  On  a  slight  pretence  war  was 
again  declared.  The  submission  of  the  Carthaginians  was 
abject.  They  gave  up  three  hundred  hostages,  and  surren- 
dered their  arms  and  armor.  But  when  bidden  to  leave  the 
city  that  it  might  be  razed,  they  were  driven  to  desperation. 
Old  and  young  toiled  at  the  forges  to  make  new  weapons. 
Vases  of  gold  and  silver,  even  the  statues  of  the  gods,  were 
melted.  The  women  braided  their  long  hair  into  bow-strings. 
The  Romans  intrusted  the  siege  to  the  younger  Scipio.f  He 
captured  Carthage,  after  a  desperate  struggle.  Days  of  con- 
flagration and  plunder  followed.  The  city,  which  had  lasted 
over  seven  hundred  years  and  numbered  seven  hundred 
thousand  inhabitants,  was  utterly  wasted.  The  Carthaginian 
territory  was  turned  into  the  province  of  Africa.  J 

»  Prominont  amonsr  these  was  Cato  the  Censor.  This  rough,  stem  man,  with  Ms 
red  hilr,  projecting  teeth,  and  coarse  robe,  was  the  sworn  foe  to  hixury,  and  the  per- 
Loniflcation  of  the  old  Roman  character.  Cruel  toward  his  slaves  and  revengeful 
toward  his  foes,  he  was  yet  rigid  in  morals,  devoted  to  his  country,  and  fearless  in 
punishing  crime.  In  the  discharge  of  hi?  duty  as  censor,  he  criticised  the  income 
and  expenses  of  all.  Rich  furniture,  jewels,  and  costly  attire  fell  under  his  ban.  He 
even  removed,  it  is  said,  the  cold-water  pipes  leading  to  the  private  houses.  Jealous 
of  any  rival  to  Rome,  he  finished  every  speech  with  the  words,  "  Delenda  est  Car- 
thago ! " 

t  (1.)  PubliuH  Cornelius  Scipio  Africanm  Major  (p.  44)  was  the  conqueror  of 
Hannibal.  (2  )  F>j.blvt8  Vornelim  Scipio  ^inilianus  Afncanm  Minor,  the  one  spoken 
1)1  in  the  text  as  the  destroyer  of  Carthage,  was  the  son  of  Lucius  ^-EniUius  Paidlus, 
the  conqueror  of  Maccdon  (p.  40),  and  was  adopted  by  P.  Scipio,  tlie  son  of  Af  ricanus 
Major.  (3.)  Luciwi  Cornelius  Sci/no  Asia/icux,  who  defeated  Antiochus  (p.  47),  and 
hence  received  the  last  title,  was  the  brother  of  Africanus  Major. 

J  When  Scipio  beheld  the  ruin  of  Carthage,  he  is  said  to  have  burst  into  tears,  and 
turning  to  Polybius  the  historian,  quoted  the  lines  of  Homer: 

"  The  day  will  come  when  Troy  shall  sink  in  fire 
And  Priam's  people  with  himself  expire." 
And,  reflecting  on  the  mutationa  of  time,  declared  that  Hector's  words  might  yet 
prove  true  of  Rume  herself. 


46  E  0  M  E .  [146  B.  c. 

Eome  was  at  last  victor  over  her  great  rival.  It  was  de- 
cided that  Europe  was  not  to  be  given  over  to  Punic  civiliza- 
tion and  the  intellectual  despotism  of  the  East. 

Wars  in  Macedon  and  Greece. — While  Hannibal  was 
hard-pressed  in  Italy  he  made  a  treaty  with  Philip,  king  of 
Macedon,  and  a  descendant  of  Alexander.  In  the  First  War 
Avhich  ensued  (214-207  b.  c),  not  much  of  importance  oc- 
curred, but  Eome  had  begun  to  mix  in  Grecian  affairs,  and 
that,  according  to  lier  wont,  meant  conquest  by  and  by. 

The  Second  War  (200-197  b.  c.)  was  brought  about  by 
Philip's  attacking  the  Roman  allies.  The  consul  Flaminius 
now  entered  Greece,  proclaiming  himself  the  champion  of 
Hellenic  liberty.  Transported  with  this  thought,  nearly  all 
Hellas  ranged  itself  under  the  eagles  of  Rome.  Philip  was 
overthrown  at  the  battle  of  CynoscepJialce  (197  b.  c),  and 
forced  to  accept  a  most  degrading  peace. 

After  Philip's  death,  his  son  Perseus  was  indefatigable  in 
his  efforts  to  restore  Macedon  to  its  old-time  glory. 

TJie  Third  War  (171-168  B.C.)  culminated  in  the  battle 
of  Pydna,  where  the  famous  Roman  general  Paullus  van- 
quished forever  the  cumbersome  phalanx,  and  ended  the 
Macedonian  monarchy.  One  hundred  and  fifty-six  years 
after  Alexander's  death,  the  last  king  of  Macedon  was  led 
in  triumph  by  a  general  belonging  to  a  nation  of  which, 
probably,  the  Conqueror  had  scarcely  heard. 

The  results  of  these  wars  were  reaped  within  a  brief  period. 
The  Federal  Unions  of  Greece  were  dissolved.  Macedon  was 
divided  into  four  commonwealths,  and  finally,  under  pre- 
tence of  a  rebellion,  made  a  Roman  province  (148  b.  c).  In 
the  same  year  that  Carthage  fell,  Corinth,*  the  great  seaport 

*  Mummius,  the  consul  who  took  Corinth,  which  Cicero  termed  "  The  eye  of 
Hellas,"  sent  its  wealth  of  statues  and  pictures  to  Rome.  It  is  said  that,  ignorant  of 
the  unique  value  of  these  works  of  art,  he  agreed  with  the  captains  of  the  vessels  to  fur- 
nish others  in  place  of  any  they  might  lose  on  the  voyage.    One  cannot  but  remem- 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  47 

of  the  Eastern  Mediterranean,  was  sacked,  and  Greece  her- 
self, after  being  amused  for  a  time  with  the  semblance  of 
freedom,  was  organized  into  the  province  of  Achaia. 

Syrian  War  (192-190  B.C.). — "Macedon  and  Greece 
proved  easy  stepping-stones  for  Rome  to  meddle  in  the  affairs 
of  Asia."  At  this  time  Anti'ochus  the  Great  governed  the 
kingdom  of  the  Seleucidae,  which  then  extended  from 
the  xEgean,  beyond  the  Tigris.  His  capital,  Antioch  on  the 
Orontes,  was  the  seat  of  Greek  culture,  and  one  of  the  chief 
cities  of  the  world.  He  was  not  unwilhng  to  measure 
swords  with  the  Eomans,  and  received  Hannibal  at  his  court 
with  marked  honor.  During  the  interval  between  the 
second  and  third  Macedonian  wars  the  ^tolians,  thinking 
themselves  badly  used  by  the  Romans,  invited  Antiochus  to 
come  over  to  their  hel]).  He  despised  the  wise  counsel  and 
military  skill  of  Hannibal,  and,  appearing  in  Greece  with 
only  ten  thousand  men,  was  easily  defeated  by  the  Romans  at 
Tliermopijloe.  The  next  year,  L.  Scipio  (note,  p.  45)  fol- 
lowed him  into  Asia,  and  overthrew  his  power  on  the  field 
of  3Ia(jnesia  (100  B.C.). 

Tbe  great  empire  of  the  Seleucidae  now  shrank  to  the 
kingdom  of  S}Tia.  Though  the  Romans  did  not  at  present 
assume  formal  control  of  their  conquest,  yet,  by  a  shrewd 
policy  of  weakening  the  powerful  states,  playing  off  small 
ones  against  one  another,  supporting  one  of  the  two  rival  fac- 
tions, and  favoring  their  allies,  they  taught  the  Greek  cities 
in  Asia  Minor  to  look  up  to  the  great  central  power  on  the 
Tiber  just  as,  by  the  same  tortuous  course,  they  had  led 
Greece  and  Macedon  to  do.  Thus  tlie  Romans  aided  Per- 
gamus,  and  enlarged  its  territories,  because  its  king  helped 
them  against  Antiochus.     Finally,  when  Attalus  III.  died, 

ber,  however,  tliat  this  ignorant  plebeian  maintained  liis  honesty,  and  liept  none  of 
the  rich  cpoils  for  himself. 


4S  ROME.  [133  B.C, 

he  left  that  country  by  will  to  the  Komans.  So  Eome  got 
her  first  Asiatic  province  (133  B.C.). 

"War  in  Spain. — After  the  capture  of  Carthage  and 
Corinth,  Rome  continued  her  efforts  to  subdue  Spam.  The 
rugged  nature  of  the  country,  and  the  bravery  of  the  inhab- 
itants, made  the  struggle  a  doubtful  one.  The  town  of 
Numantia  held  out  long  against  the  younger  Scipio  (note, 
p.  45).  Finally,  in  despair,  the  people  set  fire  to  the  place 
and  threw  themselves  into  the  flames.  When  the  Romans 
forced  an  entrance  through  the  walls,  they  found  silence  and 
desolation  within.  Spain  now  became  a  Roman  province — 
the  same  year  of  Attains'  bequest,  and  thirteen  years  aftei 
the  fall  of  Carthage  and  Corinth. 

The  Roman  Empire  (133  b.  c.)  included  southern 
Europe  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Bosporus,  and  a  j^art  of 
northern  Africa  ;  while  Syria,  Egypt,  and  Asia  Minor  Avere 
practically  its  dependencies.  The  Mediterranean  Sea  was  a 
"Roman  lake,"  and  Rome  was  mistress  of  the  civilized  ivorld. 
Henceforth  her  wars  were  princij)ally  with  barbarians. 

Effect  of  these  Conquests. — Italy  had  formerly  been 
covered  with  little  farms  of  a  few  acres  each,  which  the  in- 
dustrious, frugal  Romans  cultivated  with  their  own  hands. 
When  Hannibal  swept  the  country  with  fire  and  sword,  he 
destroyed  these  comfortable,  rural  homes  throughout  entire 
districts.  The  people,  unable  to  get  a  living,  flocked  to 
Rome.  There,  humored,  flattered,  and  fed  by  every  dema- 
gogue who  wished  their  votes,  they  sank  into  a  mere  mob. 
The  Roman  race  itself  was  fast  becoming  extinct.*     It  had 

*  "  At  the  time  when  all  the  kings  of  the  earth  paid  homage  to  the  'Romans,  this 
people  was  becoming  estingnished,  consumed  by  the  double  action  of  eternal  war, 
and  of  a  devouring  system  of  legislation  ;  it  was  disappearing  from  Italy.  The  Ro- 
man, passing  his  life  in  camps,  beyond  the  seas,  rarely  retiirnel  to  visit  his  iittle  field. 
He  had  in  most  cases,  indeed,  no  land  or  shelter  at  all,  nor  any  other  domestic  gods 
than  the  eagles  of  the  legions.  An  exchange  was  becoming  established  between  Italy 
and  the  provinces.    Italy  sent  her  children  to  die  in  distant  lands,  and  received  in 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTOEY.  4l) 

perished  on  its  hundred  battle-fields.  Rome  was  inhabited 
by  a  motley  population  from  all  lands,  who  poorly  filled  the 
place  of  her  ancient  heroes. 

The  captives  in  these  vai'ious  wars  had  been  sold  as  slaves, 
and  the  nobles,  who  had  secured  most  of  the  land,  worked  it 
by  their  unpaid  labor.  Everywhere  in  the  fields  were  gangs 
of  men,  whose  only  crime  was  that  they  had  fought  for  their 
homes,  tied  together  with  chains  ;  and,  tending  the  flocks, 
were  gaunt,  shaggy  wretches,  carrying  the  goad  in  hands 
which  had  once  wielded  the  sword. 

The  riches  of  Syracuse,  Carthage,  Macedonia,  Greece,  and 
Asia  poured  into  Rome.  Men  who  went  to  foreign  wars 
as  poor  soldiers  came  back  with  enormous  riches — the 
spoils  of  sacked  cities.  The  nobles  were  rich  beyond  every 
dream  of  republican  Rome.  But,  meanwhile,  the  poor  grew 
poorer  yet,  and  the  curse  of  poverty  ate  deeper  into  the 
state. 

A  few  wealthy  families  governed  the  senate  and  filled  all 
the  offices.  Thus  a  new  nobility,  founded  on  money  alone, 
had  grown  up  and  become  all-powerful.  It  was  customary 
for  a  candidate  to  amuse  the  people  with  costly  games,  and 
none  but  the  rich  could  afford  the  exi)ense.  The  consul,  at 
the  end  of  his  year  of  office,  was  usually  appointed  governor 
of  a  province,  where  out  of  an  02)pressed  people  he  could 
recompense  himself  for  all  his  losses.  To  keep  the  Roman 
populace  in  good  humor,  he  would  send  back  gifts  of  grain, 
and,  if  any  complaint  was  made  of  his  injustice  and  robbery, 
he  could  easily  bribe  the  Judges  and  senators,  Avho  were 
anxious  only  for  the  same  cliance  which  he  had. 

comperiBatlon  millions  of  plavec.  Thus  a  new  people  Piicceodcd  to  the  ahscnt  or 
destroyed  Roman  people.  Slaves  took  the  place  of  masters,  i)roudly  occupied  the 
Fomm,  and  In  tlnir  fantastic  patunialia  governed  by  tlieir  decrees  the  Liitini'  and  the 
Italians,  who  filled  the  lotion-.  It  was  soon  no  lonj,'er  a  question  where  were  the 
plebeians  of  Rome.  They  had  left  their  hones  on  every  shore.  Campe,  urns,  and 
immortal  roads — tbusc  were  all  that  remained  of  them." — Mlchelet. 


50 


ROME. 


In  the  early  days  of  tlie  republic,  the  soldier  was  a  citizen 
who  went  forth  to  fight  his  country's  battles,  and,  returning 
home,  settled  down  again  upon  his  little  farm,  contented 
and  hapi)y.  Military  life  had  now  become  a  profession. 
Patriotism  was  almost  a  forgotten  virtue,  and  the  soldier 
fought  for  plunder  and  glory.  In  the  wake  of  the  army 
followed  a  crowd  of  venal  traders,  who  bought  up  the  booty; 
contractors,  who  ''farmed"  the  revenues  of  the  provinces; 
and  usurers,  who  preyed  on  the  necessities  of  all.  These 
rich  army-followers  were  known  as  knights  [equites),  since 
in  the  early  days  of  Eome  the  richest  men  fought  on  horse- 
back. They  rarely  took  part  in  any  war,  but  only  reaped 
its  advantages.  The  presents  of  foreign  kings  were  no 
longer  refused  at  Eome  ;  her  generals 
and  statesmen  demanded  money  wher- 
ever they  went.  Well  might  Scipio 
Africanus,  instead  of   praying  to  the 


KOMAN    bOLUlERS. 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  51 

gods,  as  was  the  custom,  to  increase  the  state,  beg  them  to 
preserve  it  ! 

In  this  general  decadence  the  fine  moral  fibre  of  the  nation 
lost  its  vigor.  First,  the  people  left  their  own  gods  and  took 
up  foreign  ones.  As  the  ancients  had  no  idea  of  a  common 
god  of  all  nations,  such  a  desertion  of  their  patron  deities 
was  full  of  significance.  It  ended  in  a  general  scepticism 
and  neglect  of  religious  rites  and  worship.  In  addition,  the 
Romans  became  cruel  and  unjust.  Nothing  showed  this 
more  clearly  than  their  refusal  to  grant  the  Eoman  franchise 
to  the  Latin  cities,  which  stood  by  them  so  faithfully  during 
Hannibal's  invasion.  Yet  there  were  great  men  in  Rome, 
and  the  ensuing  centuries  were  the  palmiest  of  her  history. 


THE    CIVIL    AVARS. 

Now  began  a  century  of  civil  strife,  during  which  the  old 
respect  for  laws  became  weak,  .and  parties  obtained  their  end 
by  bribery  and  bloodshed. 

Th3  Gracchi. — The  tribune  Tiberius  Gracchus,*  per- 
ceiWng  the  peril  of  the  state,  secured  a  new  agrarian  law 
(p.  20),  directing  the  pubHc  land  to  be  assigned  in  small 
farms  to  the  needy,  so  as  to  give  every  man  a  homestead ; 
and,  in  addition,  he  proposed  to  divide  the  treasures  of 
Attalus  among  those  who  received  land,  in  order  to  enable 
them  to  build  houses  and  buy  cattle.  But  the  oligarchs 
aroused  a  mob  by  which  Gracchus  was  assassinated. 

*  Cornolin,  the  mother  of  Tiberius  and  Cains  Gracchns,  was  the  daushter  of  Scipio 
Afrlcaniii  th<!  Elder  (note,  \>.  1.")).  Left  a  widow,  phe  was  offered  marria^'f  with  tho 
kill;,'  of  EL'ypt,  but  preferred  to  devote  herself  to  the  edueiitioii  of  licr  children. 
When  a  rich  friend  once  exhibited  to  her  a  cabinet  of  rare  frenis,  bIic  called  in  her 
two  Hons,  saviiiu',  "  These  nrf  my  jewels."  Her  statue  bore  the  Inscription  l)y  which 
Bhe  wished  to  be  known,  "  Tlie  mother  of  the  Oracchi,"— Tiberius  was  the  crnind-on 
of  thf  ronfinerorofllnnnibal,  the  son-in-law  of  Appius  ClaudluB,  and  the  brother-in- 
law  of  the  Destroyer  of  Carthage. 


52  ROME, 


[133  B.  c. 


About  ten  years  later,  his  brother  Caius  tried  to  carry  out 
the  same  reform,  by  distributing  grain  to  the  poor  at  a 
nominal  price  (the  "Roman  poor-law"),  by  choosing  juries 
from  the  knights  instead  of  the  senators,  and  by  planting 
in  conquered  territories  colonies  of  men  who  had  no  work 
at  home.  All  went  well  until  he  sought  to  confer  the 
Eoman  franchise  upon  the  Latins.  Then  a  riot  was  raised, 
and  Caius  was  killed  by  a  faithful  slave  to  prevent  his  falling 
into  the  hands  of  his  enemies. 

With  the  Gracchi  perished  the  freedom  of  the  republic  ; 
henceforth  the  corrupt  aristocracy  was  supreme. 

Jugurtha  (118-104  b.  c.)  having  usurped  the  throne  of 
Numidia,  long  maintained  his  place  by  conferring  lavish 
bribes  upon  the  senators.  His  gold  conquered  every  army 
sent  against  him,  and  he  declared  that  Eome  itself  could  be 
had  for  money.  Ho  was  finally  overpowered  by  the  consul 
Caius  Marius,*  and,  after  adorning  the  victor's  triumph  at 
Eome,  thrown  into  the  Mamertine  prison  to  perish,  f 

The  Cimbri  and  Teutones  (113-101  B.C.),  the  van- 
guard of  those  northern  hosts  that  were  yet  to  overrun  the 
empire,  were  now  moving  south,  half  a  million  strong, 
spreading  dismay  and  ruin  in  their  track.  Six  different 
Eoman  armies  tried  in  vain  to  stay  their  advance.  At  Orange 
alone  eighty  thousand  Eomans  fell.  In  this  emergency,  the 
senate  appealed  to  Marius,  who,  contrary  to  law,  was  again 
and  again  reinstated  consul.  He  annihilated  the  Teutones 
at  Aiz,  and,  the  next  year,  the  Cimbri  at  Vercellm.  In  the 
latter  engagement,  the  men  composing  the  outer  lino  of  the 

*  Lucius  Cornelius  Sulla,  the  Roman  qnestor  (p.  53),  captured  Jugurtha  by- 
treachery.  Clainiiiig  that  he  was  the  real  hero  of  this  war,  he  had  a  ring  engraved 
which  represented  Jugurtha's  surrender  to  him.  Marius  and  Sulla  were  henceforth 
bitter  rivals. 

t  This  famous  dungeon  is  still  shown  the  traveler  at  Rome.  It  is  an  underground 
vault,  built  of  rough  stones.  The  only  opening  is  by  a  hole  at  the  top.  As  Jugurtha, 
accustomed  to  the  heat  of  an  African  sun,  was  lowered  into  this  dismal  grave,  he 
exclaimed,  with  chattering  teeth,  "  Ah,  what  a  cold  bath  they  are  giving  mel  " 


101  B.  c]  THE     POLITICAL     H  I  S  T  O  K  Y  .  53 

barbarian  army  were  fastened  together  with  chains,  tlie  whole 
making  a  solid  mass  three  miles  square.  The  Eoman  broad- 
sword mercilessly  hewed  its  way  through  this  struggling 
crowd.  The  Gallic  women,  in  despair,  strangled  their 
children,  and  then  threw  themselves  beneath  the  wheels  of 
their  wagons.     The  very  dogs  fought  to  the  death. 

Rome  was  saved  in  her  second  great  peril  from  barbarians. 
Marius  was  hailed  as  the  "third  founder  of  the  city." 

Social  War  (90-88  b.  c). — Drusus,  a  tribune,  having 
proposeil  that  the  Ilalians  should  be  granted  the  coveted 
citizenship,  Avas  murdered  the  very  day  a  vote  was  to  be 
taken  upon  the  measure.  On  hearing  this,  many  of  the 
Italian  cities,  headed  by  the  Marsians,  took  up  arms.  The 
veteran  legions,  which  had  conquered  the  world,  now  faced 
each  other  on  the  battle-field.  The  struggle  cost  three  hun- 
dred thousand  lives.  Houses  were  burned  and  plantations 
wasted  as  in  Hannibal's  time.  In  the  end,  Rome  was  forced 
to  allow  the  Italians  to  become  citizens. 

First  Mithridatic  War  (88-84  b.  c.).— Just  before  the 
close  of  this  bloody  struggle,  news  came  of  the  massacre  of 
eighty  thousand  Romans  and  Italians  residing  in  the  towns 
of  Asia  Minor.  Mithridates  the  Great,  king  of  Pontus, 
and  a  man  of  remarkable  energy  and  genius,  had  pro- 
claimed himself  tlie  deliverer  of  Asia  from  the  Roman 
yoke,  and  kindled  the  fires  of  insurrection  as  far  westward 
as  Greece.  The  war  against  the  Pontic  monarch  Avas  confided 
to  Sulla,  who  stood  at  the  head  of  the  Roman  aristocracy. 
But  Marius,  the  favorite  leader  of  the  people,  by  unscrupu- 
lous means  wrested  the  command  from  his  rival.  There- 
upon Sulla  entered  Rome  at  the  head  of  the  army.  Fo/  the 
first  time,  civil  war  raged  within  the  walls  of  tlie  city. 
Marius  was  driven    into  exile.*      Sulla  then  crossed   into 

•  MariuB,  after  many  romaulic  advcnturuB,  was  thrown   iuto   prieon  at  Min- 


54  ROME.  [87  B.C. 

Greece.  He  carried  on  five  campaigns,  mainly  at  his  private 
expense,  and  finally  restored  peace  on  the  condition  that 
Mithridates  should  give  up  his  conquests  and  his  fleet. 

Return  of  Marius. — Meanwhile  Cinua,  one  of  the  two 
consuls  at  Rome,  recalled  Marius,  and  together  they  entered 
the  city  with  a  body  of  men  comjaosed  of  the  very  dregs  of 
Italy.  The  nobles  and  the  friends  of  Sulla  trembled  at  this 
triumph  of  the  democracy.  Marius  now  took  a  fearful 
vengeance  for  all  he  had  suffered.  He  closed  the  gates,  and 
went  about  with  a  body  of  slaves,  who  slaughtered  every 
man  at  whom  he  pointed  his  finger.  The  principal  senators 
were  slain.  The  high-priest  of  Jupiter  was  massacred  at  the 
altar.  The  consul  Octavius  was  struck  down  in  his  curule- 
chair.  The  head  of  Antonius,  the  orator,  being  brought  to 
Marius  as  he  sat  at  su2:)per,  he  received  it  with  joy,  and 
embraced  the  murderer.  Finally,  the  monster  had  himself 
declared  consul,  now  the  seventh  time.  Eighteen  days  after, 
he  died  "  drunk  with  blood  and  wine."     (86  b.  c.) 

Sulla's  Proscriptions. — Three  years  passed,  when  the 
hero  of  the  Mithridatic  War  returned  to  Italy  with  his  vic- 
torious army.  His  progress  was  disputed  by  the  remains  of 
the  Marian  party  and  the  Samnites,  who  had  not  laid  down 
their  arms  after  the  Social  War  (p.  53).  Sulla,  however, 
swept  aside  their  forces,  and  soon  all  Italy  was  prostrate 
before  him.  It  was  now  the  turn  for  the  plebeians  and  the 
friends  of  Marius  to  fear.  As  Sulla  met  the  senate,  cries 
were  heard  in  the  neighboring  circus.  The  senators  sjjrang 
from  their  seats  in  alarm.    Sulla  bade  them  be  quiet,  remark- 

turnae.  One  day  a  Cimbrian  slave  entered  his  ceU  to  put  him  to  death.  The  old  man 
turned  npon  him  with  flashing  eye,  and  ehonted,"  Darest  thou  kill  Caius  Marius  I  " 
The  Gaul,  frightened  at  the  voice  of  his  nation's  destroyer,  dropped  his  sword  and 
fled.  Marius  was  soon  set  free  by  the  synipathizing  people,  wherenpon  he  crossed 
into  Africa.  Receiving  there  an  order  from  the  prsRtor  to  leave  the  province,  he  sent 
back  the  well-known  reply,  "  Tell  Sestilius  that  you  have  seen  Caius  Marius  sitting 
in  exile  among  the  ruins  of  Carthage." 


82B.C.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  55 

iiig,  "It  is  only  some  wi'etcbes  undergoing  the  punishment 
they  deserve."  The  ''wretches"  were  six  thousand  of  the 
Mtirian  party,  who  were  butchered  in  cold  blood.  '•'  The 
porch  of  Sulla's  house,"  says  Collier,  "was  soon  full  of 
heads."  Daily  proscription-lists  were  made  out  of  those 
doomed  to  die,  and  the  assassins  were  rewarded  from  the 
property  of  their  victims.  Wealth  became  a  crime  when 
murder  was  gain.  '"  Alas,"  exclaimed  one,  "  my  villa  is  my 
destruction."  In  all  the  disaffected  Italian  cities  the  same 
bloody  work  went  on.  Whole  districts  were  confiscated  to 
make  room  for  colonies  of  Sulla's  legions.  He  had  himself 
declared  perpetual  dictator — an  office  unused  since  the  Punic 
Wars.  He  deprived  the  tribunes  of  the  right  of  proposing 
laws,  and  sought  to  restore  the  good  old  times  when  the 
patricians  held  power,  thus  undoing  the  reforms  of  centuries. 
To  the  surprise  of  all,  however,  he  suddenly  retired  to  private 
life,  and  gave  himself  up  to  luxurious  ease.  The  civil  wars 
of  Marius  and  Sulla  had  cost  Italy  the  lives  of  one  hundi-ed 
and  fifty  thousand  citizens. 

Sertorius,  one  of  the  Marian  party,  betook  himself  to 
Spain,  gained  the  respect  and  confidence  of  the  Lusitanians, 
established  among  them  a  miniature  Roman  republic,  and 
for  seven  years  defeated  every  army  sent  against  him.  Even 
Pompey  the  Great  was  held  in  check.  Treachery  at  last 
freed  Eome  from  its  enemy,  Sertorius  being  slain  at  a 
l)aii(|iU't. 

Gladiatorial  War  (73-71  b.  c). — A  party  of  gladiators 
under  Spartacus,  having  escaped  from  a  training-school  at 
r'a|)ua,  took  refuge  in  the  crater  of  Vesuvius.  Thither 
Hocked  slaves,  peasants,  and  pirates,  until  they  were  strong 
enough  to  defeat  consular  armies,  and  for  two  years  to  rav- 
age Italv  from  Ibc  Alps  to  the  peninsula.  Crassus  finally 
killed  the  rebel  leader  in  a  desperate  battle,  and  put  his  fol- 


56  ROME.  [71  B.  c, 

lowers  to  flight.  A  body  of  five  thousand,  trying  to  escape 
into  Gaul,  fell  in  with  Pompey  the  Great  as  he  was  returning 
from  Spain,  and  were  cut  to  pieces. 

Pirates  in  these  troublous  times  infested  the  Mediter- 
ranean, so  as  to  interfere  with  trade  and  stop  the  supply  of 
provisions  at  Kome.  The  whole  coast  of  Italy  was  in  con- 
tinual alarm.  Parties  of  robbers  landing  dragged  rich  pro- 
prietors from  their  villas  and  seized  high  officials,  to  hold 
them  for  ransom.  Pompey,  in  a  brilliant  campaign  of 
ninety  days,  cleared  the  seas  of  these  buccaneers,  and  restored 
order. 

Great  Mithridatic  War  (74-63  b.  c.).— During  Sulla's 
life  the  Roman  governor  iu  Asia  causelessly  attacked  Mithri- 
dates,  but  being  defeated  and  Sulla  peremptorily  ordering 
him  to  desist,  this  Second  Mithridatic  War  soon  ceased. 
The  Third  or  Great  War  broke  out  after  the  dictator's 
death.  The  king  of  Bithynia  having  bequeathed  his  pos- 
sessions to  the  Eomans,  Mithridates  Justly  dreaded  this  ad- 
vance of  his  enemies  toward  his  own  boundaries,  and  took 
up  arms  to  prevent  it.  The  Roman  consul,  Lucullus,  de- 
feated the  Pontic  king,  and  drove  him  to  the  court  of  his 
son-in-law  Tigranes,  king  of  Armenia,  who  esj)oused  his 
cause.  Lucullus  next  overcame  the  allied  monarchs.  Mean- 
while this  wise  general  sought  to  reconcile  the  Asiatics  to  the 
Roman  government  by  legislative  reforms,  by  a  mild  and 
just  rule,  and  especially  by  cliecking  the  exactions  of  the 
farmers  of  the  revenue.  The  soldiers  of  his  own  army, 
intent  on  plunder,  and  the  equites  at  Rome  deprived  of 
their  profits,  were  incensed  against  him,  and  secured  his 
recall. 

Pompey  was  now  granted  the  power  of  a  dictator  in  the 
East.*     He  made  an  alliance  with  the  king  of  Parthia,  thus 

•  Cicero  advocated  this  measure  in  the  familiar  oration,  Pro  Lege  ManUia, 


GSb.c]  the    political    history.  57 

threatening  Mithridates  by  an  enemy  in  the  rear.  Then, 
forcing  the  Pontic  monarch  into  a  battle,  he  defeated  and, 
at  last,  drove  him  beyond  the  Caucasus.  Pompey,  returning, 
reduced  Syria,  Phoenicia,  and  Palestine. 

The  spirit  of  Mithridates  was  unbroken,  in  spite  of  the 
loss  of  his  kingdom.  He  was  meditating  a  march  around 
the  Euxine,  and  an  invasion  of  Italy  from  the  northeast, 
when,  alarmed  at  the  treachery  of  his  son,  he  took  poison, 
and  died  a  victim  of  ingi'atitude.  By  his  genius  and  courage, 
he  had  maintained  the  struggle  with  the  Komans  for  twenty- 
five  years.*  On  reaching  Rome,  Pompey  received  a  two-days 
triumph.  Before  his  chariot,  walked  three  hundred  and 
twenty-four  captive  princes ;  and  twenty  thousand  talents 
were  deposited  in  the  treasury  as  the  spoils  of  conquest. 
Pompey  was  now  at  the  height  of  his  popularity,  and  might 
have  usurped  supreme  power,  but  he  lacked  the  energy  and 
determination. 

Catiline's  Conspiracy  (63  b.  c). — During  Pompey's  ab- 
sence at  the  East,  Catiline,  an  abandoned  young  nobleman, 
had  formed  a  wide-spread  plot  to  murder  the  consuls,  fire 
the  city,  and  overthrow  the  government.  Cicero,  the 
orator,  exposed  the  conspiracy,  f  Whereupon,  Catiline  fled, 
and  was  soon  after  slain,  fighting  at  the  head  of  a  band  of 
desperadoes. 

The  chief  men  of  Rome  now  were  Pompey,  Crassus, 

•  The  armor  which  fitted  the  gigantic  frame  of  Mithridates  excited  the  wonder 
alike  of  Aniaiic  and  Ituliaii.  As  a  runner,  he  overtoolt  tlic  fleetest  di'cr  ;  as  a  rider, 
lie  brolte  the  wildest  steed  ;  as  a  charioteer,  he  drove  t<ixteen-in  hand  ;  and,  us  a 
hunter,  he  liit  his  game  with  likliorHc  at  full  i;allup.  lie  liei)t  Greek  jioets,  historians, 
and  philosophers  at  his  court,  and  gave  prizes,  not  only  to  tlie  greatest  euter  and 
drinker,  but  to  iU>:  merriest  jester  and  the  best  singer.  He  rnU-d  the;  twenty-two 
nations  of  his  realiri  williout  tlic  aid  of  an  interpretcM-.  !!(!  experimented  on  poisons 
and  Bouglil  lo  harden  his  system  to  their  efl'cct.  One  day  he  disappeared  from  the 
palace  ami  was  alj.-i-nt  for  months.  On  his  return,  it  appeand  that  he  had  wandered 
incofjnilo  ihrougli  Asia  Minor,  siuilying  the  people  and  countiy. 

t  The  oi-ations  which  Cicero  jironounced  at  this  tinw  against  Catiline  are  master- 
pieces  of  impatiitioued  rhuioric,  and  are  still  studied  by  every  Latin  scholar. 


58 


ROME. 


[60  B.  c. 


CAIUi.  JULIUS   CyESAR. 


Caesar,*  Cicero,  and  Cato 
the  Stoic — a  great  grand- 
son of  the  Censor.  The 
first  three  formed  a  league, 
known  as  the  Triumvirate 
(60  B.  c).  To  cement  tliis 
union,  Pompey  married 
Julia,  Csesar's  only  daugh- 
ter. The  triumyirs  had 
everything  their  own  way. 
CaBsar  obtained  the  con- 
sulship, and,  afterward,  an 
appointment  as  governor 
of  Gaul  :  Cicero  was  ban- 


ished, and  Cato  sent  to  Cyprus. 


*  Cnsp.ar  was  born  100  n.  c.  (according  to  Mommsen,  102  e.  c).  A  patrician,  he  was 
yet  a  friend  of  the  people.  His  aunt  was  married  to  Mariiis  ;  liis  wife  Cornelia  was  the 
daugliter  of  Cinna.  During  Sulla's  proscription,  he  refused  to  divorce  his  wife  at  the 
bidding  of  the  dictator,  and  only  the  intercession  of  powerful  friends  saved  his  life. 
Sulla  detected  the  ctiaracter  of  this  youtli  of  eighteen  years,  and  declared,  "  There  is 
more  than  one  Marius  hid  in  him."  While  on  his  way  to  Rhodes  to  study  oratory,  he 
was  falien  prisoner  by  pirates,  but  he  acted  more  like  tlieir  leader  than  cajitive,  and,  on 
being  ransomed,  headed  a  party  which  cn;cifled  them  all.  Having  been  elected  pontifE 
during  his  absence  at  tlie  East,  he  returned  to  Rome.  He  now  became  in  sticcession 
quasstor,  redile,  ard  pontifex  inasimus.  His  affable  manners  and  boundless  generosity 
won  all  hearts.  As  nedile,  a  part  of  his  duty  was  to  furnish  amusement  to  the  people, 
and  he  exhibited  three  hundred  and  twenty  pairs  of  gladiators,  clad  in  silver  armor. 
His  debts  became  enormous,  the  heaviest  creditor  being  tlie  rich  Crassus,  to  whom 
half  tlie  senators  are  said  to  have  owed  money.  Securing  an  appointment  as  proelor, 
at  the  termination  of  that  office,  according  to  tlie  custom,  he  Cutained  a  jiroviuce. 
Selecting  Spain,  he  there  recruited  hi.?  wasted  fortune,  and  gained  some  milit.".ry 
prominence.  He  then  came  back  to  Eo'.-.ie.  relinquishing  a  triumph  in  order  to  enter 
the  city  and  stand  for  the  consulship.  This  gained,  his  next  step  was  to  secure  a  field 
where  he  could  train  an  army,  by  whose  help  he  might  become  master  of  Rome. 

It  is  a  strange  sight,  indeed,  to  witness  this  spendthrift,  pale  and  worn  with  tlic 
excesses  of  the  capital,  fighting  at  the  head  of  his  legions,  swimming  rivers,  phingiug 
through  morasses,  and  climbing  mountains— the  hardiest  of  the  hardy  and  the  bravest 
of  the  brave.  But  it  is  stranger  still  to  think  of  this  groat  general  and  statesman  as  a 
literary  man.  Even  when  riding  in  his  litter  or  resting,  he  was  still  reading  or  virit- 
ing,  and  often  at  the  same  time  dictating  to  from  four  to  seven  amanuenses.  Besides 
his  famous  Commenlcmes,  published  in  the  very  midst  of  his  eventful  career,  he 
composed  works  on  rhetoric  and  grammar,  as  well  as  tragedies,  lyrics,  etc.  His  style 
is  pure  and  natural,  and  the  polished  smoothness  of  his  sentences  gives  no  hint  of 
the  stormy  scenes  amid  which  they  were  formed. 


nsB.c] 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY. 


69 


C^SAR  remained  in  Ganl 
about  nine  years.  He  re- 
duced the  entire  country, 
crossed  the  Rhine,  carrying 
the  Roman  arms  into  Ger- 
many for  the  first  time, 
and  twice  invaded  Britain 
—an  island  until  then  un- 
known in  Italy  except  by 
name.  Not  only  were  the 
three  hundred  tribes  of 
Transalpinc'Gaul  thorough- 
ly subdued,  but  they  were 
made  content  with  Caesar's 
rule.  He  became  their  civ- 
ilizer,  building  roads  and 
introducing  Roman  laws, 
institutions,  manners  and 
customs.  Moreover,  he 
trained  an  army  that  knew 
no  mind  or  will  except  that 
of  its  great  general.  Mean- 
while, Ctesar's  friends  in 
Rome,  withiheGallic  spoils 
which  he  freely  sent  them, 
bribed  and  dazzle<l  and  in- 
trigued to  sustain  their 
ma-ter's  i>ower.  .'ind  secure 
hii.)  the  next  consulship. 


Crassus  was  chosen 
joiut-consul  with  Porapey 
(56  B.  c.)  ;  he  secured  the 
province  oi  Syria.  Eager 
to  obtain  the  boundless 
treasures  of  the  East,  he 
set  out  upon  an  expedition 
asrainst  Parthia.  On  the 
way,he  plundered  the  tem- 
ple at  Jerusalem.  While 
crossing  the  scorching 
plains  beyond  the  Eu- 
phrates, not  f.ir  from  Char- 
roe  (the  Haran  of  the 
Bible),  he  was  suddenly 
surrounded  by  clouds  of 
Parthian  horsemen.  Ro- 
man valor  WIS  of  no  avail 
in  that  ceaseless  storm  of 
arrows.  During  the  retreat, 
Crassus  was  slain.  His 
head  was  carried  to  the 
Parthian  king,  who,  in  de- 
rision, ordered  it  to  be  filled 
with  molten  gold.  The 
death  of  Crassus  ended  the 
Triumvirate. 


PosTPET,  after  a  time, 
was  elected  joint-consul 
with  Crassus, and, later, sole 
consul ;  he  obtained  the 
province  of  Gaul,  which  he 
governed  by  legates.  He 
now  rrued  Rome,  but  wa3 
bent  on  ruling  the  empire. 
The  death  of  his  wife  had 
severed  the  link  which 
bound  him  to  the  conqueror 
of  Gaul.  He  accordingly 
joined  with  the  nobles, 
who  were  also  alarmed  by 
Ciesar's  brilliant  victories, 
and  the  strength  his  suc- 
cess gave  the  popular  party. 
A  law  was  therefore  passed 
ordering  Coesar  to  resign 
his  office  and  disband  his 
army  before  he  appeared 
to  sue  for  the  consulship. 
The  tribunes — Antony  and 
Cassius — who  supported 
Cissar,  were  driven  from 
the  senate.  They  fled  to 
his  camp,  and  demanded 
protection. 


Civil  War  between  Caesar  and  Pompey  (49  b.  c.).— 
Csesar  at  once  niarehed  upon  Rome.  Pompey  had  boasted 
that  he  had  only  to  stamp  his  foot,  and  an  army  would 
fpring  from  the  ground  ;  but  he  now  fled  to  Greece  with- 
out striking  a  blow.  In  si.xty  days,  Cassar  was  master  of 
Italy.  The  decisive  stniggle  between  the  two  rivals  took 
place  on  the  plain  of  Pharsalia  (48  B.C.).  Pompey  was 
beaten.  lie  sought  refuge  in  Egypt,  where  he  was  treach- 
erously slain.  His  head  being  brought  to  Caesar,  the  con- 
fjueror  wept  at  the  fate  of  his  former  friend. 

Ca?sar  now  placed  the  beautiful  Cleopatra  on  the  throne 
of  the  Ptolemies,  and,  marching  into  Syria,  huml)lcd 
Pliamaces,  the  son  of  Mithridates,  so  quickly  that  he 
could  Avrite  home  this  laconic  despatch,  Veni,  Vltii,  Vici 
(I  came,  I  saw,  I  conquered).     Cato  and  other  Pompeian 


60  HOME.  [46  B.C. 

leaders  had  assembled  a  great  force  in  Africa,  whereupon 
Csesar  hurried  his  conquering  legions  thither,  and  at  Thapsus 
broke  down  all  opposition  (46  b,  c).  Cato,  in  despair  of  the 
republic,  fell  upon  his  sword.  The  sons  of  Pompej  rallied 
an  army  i\\  Spain,  but,  in  the  desperate  conflict  at  Munda, 
CfBsar  blotted  the  broken  remains  of  their  party  out  of 
existence  (45  B.C.). 

Caesar  returned  to  Rome  before  this  final  straggle  in 
Spain.  A  four-days  triumph  reddened  the  sands  of  the 
arena  with  the  blood  of  Avild  beasts  and  gladiators.  Every 
citizen  received  a  present,  and  the  populace  regaled  them- 
selves at  a  banquet  spread  on  twenty-two  thousand  tables. 
The  joy  was  unalloyed  by  any  proscription.  The  adulation 
of  the  senate  surpassed  all  bounds.  Caesar  was  created  dic- 
tator for  ten  years  and  censor  for  three,  and  his  statue  was 
placed  in  the  Capitol,  opposite  to  that  of  Jupiter. 

Caesar's  G-overnment. — At  Caesar's  magic  touch,  order 
and  justice  sprang  into  new  life.  The  provinces  rejoiced  in 
an  honest  administration.  The  Gauls  obtained  seats  in  the 
senate,  and  it  was  Caesar's  design  to  have  all  the  provinces 
represented  in  that  body  by  their  chief  men.  The  calendar 
was  revised.*  The  distress  among  the  poor  was  relieved  by 
sending  eighty  thousand  colonists,  to  rebuild  Corinth  and 
Carthage.  The  number  of  claimants  upon  the  public  dis- 
tribution of  grain  was  reduced  over  one-half.  A  plan  was 
formed  of  digging  a  new  channel  for  the  Tiber  and  draining 
tlie  Pontine  marshes.  Nothing  was  too  vast  or  too  small 
for  the  comprehensive  mind  of  this  mighty  statesman.  He 
could  guard  the  boundaries  of  his  vast  empire  along  the 
Ithine,  Danube,  and  Euphrates  ;  look  after  the  paving  of  the 

*  The  Roman  year  contained  only  three  hundred  and  fifty-five  days,  and  the  mid- 
Bumnier  and  the  mid-winter  months  then  came  in  the  spring  and  the  fall.  Julius 
Cfe>ar  introduced  the  extra  day  of  leap  year,  and  July  was  named  after  him.  See 
Sleek'n  New  Astronomy,  p.  2ffi). 


44  B.  c] 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY. 


61 


Roman  streets ;  and  listen  to  the  recitation  of  pieces  for 
prizes  at  the  theatres,  bestowing  the  wreath  upon  the  victor, 
with  extempore  verse. 

Csssar's  Assassination  (44  b.  c). — Caesar,  now  dictator 
for  hfc,  was  desirous  of  being  king  in  name  as  in  fact.  While 
passing  through  the  streets  one  day,  he  was  hailed  king  ;  as 
the  crowd  murmured,  he  cried  out,  "I  am  not  king,  but 
Caesar."  Still,  when  Mark  Antony,  the  consul  and  liis  inti- 
mate friend,  at  a  festival,  offered  him  a  crown,  Csesar  seemed 
to  thrust  it  aside  reluctantly.  The  hatred  of  zealous 
republicans  was  excited,  and,  under  the  guise  of  a  love  of 
liberty  and  old  Roman  virtue,  those  who  were  jealous  of 
Caesar  or  hated  him,  formed  a  conspiracy  for  his  assassination. 
Brutus  and  Cassius,  the  leaders,  chose  the  fifteenth  of  the 
ensuing  March  for  the  execution  of  the  deed.  As  the  day 
approached,  the  air  was  thick  with  rumors  of  approaching 
disaster.  A  famous  augur  warned  Caesar  to  beware  of  the 
Ides  *  of  March.  The  night  before,  his  wife  Calpurnia  was 
disturbed  by  an  ominous 
dream.     On  the  way  to  the  ..<^^^^ 

eenate-house  he  was  handed 
a  scroll  containing  the  de- 
tails of  the  plot,  but  in 
the  press  he  had  no  chance 
to  read  it.  When  the  con- 
spirators crowded  about 
him,  no  alarm  was  caused, 
•ds  they  were  men  wlio  owed 
their  lives  to  his  leniency  and  their  fortunes  to  his  favor. 


i     MI'.l.liM.  t 


•  In  the  KoTnanralnndnr,  I liP  monthrt  were  divided  into  fliroe  partu— Catenrf*-,  fde; 
and  Sonn  The  Cal'Midn  roinirienccd  on  ihe  fli-ct  of  ea''li  month,  and  were  reckoned 
hacliWJird  Into  tlic  preiedinf;  month  lo  the  Iden.  The  Noni'M  fell  on  llie  cevenlh  of 
Marcli.  May,  July,  and  October,  and  on  the  fifth  of  the  other  monthn.  The  Ides 
cami'  on  the  thlrf-'enlh  of  all  months  except  thef>e  four,  when  they  were  the  fifteenth. 

+  S.  I'.  (;.  U  ^taIldH  for  HenaluH  Popiilus(itie  Hom:iiius— the  Senate  and  Hmiian 
PcoDle. 


62  R  0  >[  E  . 


[44  B.  c. 


Suddenly,  swords  gleamed  on  every  hand.  For  a  moment, 
the  great  soldier  defended  himself  Avith  the  sharp  point  of 
his  iron  pen.  Then,  catching  sight  of  the  loved  and  trusted 
Brutus,  he  exclaimed,  "Et  tu  Brute  !"  (And  thou,  too, 
Brutus  !)  and,  wrapping  his  mantle  about  liis  face,  sank 
dead  at  the  foot  of  Pompey's  statue.  * 

Tlie  result  was  very  different  from  what  the  assassins  had 
expected.  The  senate  rushed  out  horror-stricken  at  the  deed. 
The  reading  of  Caesar's  will,  in  which  he  gave  every  citizen 
three  hundred  sesterces  (over  ten  dollars),  and  threw  open 
his  sj)lendid  gardens  across  the  Tiber  as  a  public  park,  roused 
the  popular  fury.  When  Antony  pronounced  the  funeral 
eulogy,  and,  finally,  held  up  Caesar's  rent  and  bloody  toga, 
the  mob  broke  through  every  restraint,  and  ran  with  torches 
to  burn  the  houses  of  the  murderers.  Brutus  and  Cassius 
fled  to  save  their  lives. 

Second  Triumvirate  (43  b.  c). — Antony  was  fast  get- 
ting power  into  his  hand,  when  there  arrived  at  Rome, 
Octavius,  Csesar's  great-nephew  and  heir.  He  received 
the  support  of  the  senate  and  of  Cicero,  who  denounced 
Antony  in  fiery  orations.  Antony  was  forced  into  exile, 
and   then,    twice    defeated    in    battle,    took    refuge   with 

*  Cassar's  brief  public  life— for  only  five  stirring  years  elapsed  from  his  entrance 
into  Italy  to  iiis  assassination — was  full  of  dramatic  scenes.  Before  marching  ui>on 
Rome,  it  is  said  (though  research  stamps  it  as  doubtful)  that  he  stopped  at  tlie  Rubicon, 
the  boundary  between  his  province  of  Cisalpine  Gaul  and  Italy,  and  hesitated  long. 
To  pass  it,  was  to  make  war  upon  the  republic.  At  last,  he  shouted,  "The  die  is 
ca^t!"  and  plunged  into  the  stream.— When  he  had  crossed  into  Greece  in  pursuit  of 
I'orapey,  he  became  impatient  at  Antony's  delay  in  bringing  over  the  rest  of  the 
army,  and,  disguising  himself,  attempted  to  return  across  the  Adriatic  in  a  small  boat. 
The  sea  ran  high,  and  the  crew  determined  to  put  back,  when  Ciesar  shouted,  "  Go  on 
boldly,  fear  nothing,  thou  bearest  Ceesar  and  his  fortune  !  "—At  the  battle  of  Phar- 
salia,  he  ordered  his  men  to  aim  at  the  faces  of  Pompey's  cavalry.  The  Roman 
knight;-,,  dismayed  at  this  attack  on  their  beauty,  quickly  fled  ;  after  the  victory, 
Caisar  rode  over  the  field  calling  upon  the  men  to  spare  the  Roman  citizens,  and  on 
reaching  Pompey's  tent  put  his  letters  in  the  fire  unread. — When  Cte^ar  learned  of  the 
death  ofCato  he  lamented  the  tragic  fate  of  such  high  integrity  and  virtue,  and  ex- 
claimed, "Cato,  I  envy  thee  thy  death,  since  thou  envifest  me  the  glory  of  saving  thy 
life  1 " 


48  BC]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  Go 

Lepidus,  governor  of  a  part  of  Spain  and  Gaul.  Octavius 
returned  to  Rome,  won  the  favor  of  the  people,  and,  though 
a  youth  of  only  nineteen,  was  chosen  consul.  A  triumvi- 
rate, similar  to  the  one  seventeen  years  before,  Avas  now 
formed  between  Antony,  Octavius,  and  Lepidus.  The  bar- 
gain was  sealed  by  a  proscription  more  horrible  than  that  of 
Sulla.  Lepidus  sacrificed  his  brother,  Antony  his  uncle, 
and  Octavius  his  warm  supporter,  Cicero.  The  orator's 
head  having  been  brought  to  Rome,  Fulvia  thrust  her  golden 
bodkin  through  the  tongue  that  had  pronounced  the  Philip- 
pics against  her  husband  Antony. 

Battle  of  Philippi  (42  b.  c.).— Brutus  and  Cassius,  who 
had  gone  to  the  East,  raised  an  army  to  resist  this  new 
coalition.  The  triumvirs  pursued  them,  and  the  issue  was 
decided  on  the  field  of  Philippi.  Brutus*  and  Cassius 
were  defeated,  and,  in  despair,  committed  suicide.  Octavius 
and  Antony  divided  the  empire  between  them,  the  former 
taking  the  West,  and  the  latter  the  East.  Lepidus  received 
Africa,  but  was  soon  stripped  of  his  share  and  sent  back  to 
Rome. 

Antony  and  Cleopatra. — Antony  now  went  to  Tarsus, 
to  look  after  his  new  possessions.  Here,  Cleopatra  was 
summoned  to  answer  for  having  supported  Cassius  against 
the  triumvirs.    She  came,  captivated  Antony  by  her  charms.f 


*  BnitiiK,  hfiforo  thi«  battle,  was  dii'hoartonprl.  The  triumvirs  had  provcrl  worse 
tyrant-^  timri  he  conld  ever  have  feared  ('jc«ar  would  become.  He  and  Cassius  qnar- 
rcli'd  bitterly.  Hi«  wife.  Portia,  had  di<d  (accordiuj;  to  pome  authorities)  broken- 
hearted at  the  calamities"  which  hatl  befalUn  her  country.  One  ni<;ht,  as  he  was  sit- 
tiriij  alone  in  his  tent,  musini;:  over  the  troubled  state  of  iifTairs.  lie  suddenly  per- 
ceived a  gigantic  figure  Htandiiig  before  him.  lie  was  startled,  but  exclaimed,  "  What 
art  thou,  and  for  wdiat  purpose  art  thou  come?"  "  I  am  thine  evil  >;e"ius,''  replied 
the  phantom ;  "  we  shall  meet  again  at  Philippi  !  " 

t  Cleopatra  ascended  the;  Cydnua  in  a  galley  with  purple  sails.  Th(!  oars.  Inlaid 
with  cllver,  moved  to  the  soft  nmsic  of  flute  and  pipe.  Slie  leclined  under  a  gold- 
ppangled  canopy,  attired  as  V(aius.  and  attended  by  nymphs,  cupids.  and  uraces. 
The  air  was  redolent  with  perfimies.  As  she  approached  Tar-u-,  the  whole  city 
flocked  to  witneet)  the  magnificent  Higbt,  leaving  Antony  Hitllug  aloueiu  the  tribunal. 


64  ROME.  [41  B.  C 

and  carried  him  to  Egypt.  They  passed  the  winter  in  the 
wildest  extravagance.  Breaking  away,  however,  for  a  time 
from  the  silken  chains  of  Cleopatra,  Antony,  upon  the 
death  of  Fulvia,  married  the  beantiful  and  noble  Octavia, 
sister  of  Octavius.  But,  at  the  first  opportunity,  he  went 
back  again  to  Alexandria,  where  he  laid  aside  the  dignity  of 
a  Roman  citizen  and  assumed  the  dress  of  an  Egyptian 
monarch.*  Cleopatra  was  presented  with  several  provinces, 
and  became  the  real  ruler  of  the  East. 

Civil  War  between  Octavius  and  Antony  (31  b.c). — 
The  senate  at  last  declared  war  against  Cleopatra.  There- 
upon, Antony  divorced  Octavia  and  prepared  to  invade  Italy. 
The  rival  fleets  met  off  the  promontory  of  Ac'tium.  Cleo- 
patra fled  with  her  ships  early  in  the  day.  Antony,  basely 
deserting  those  who  were  dying  for  his  cause,  followed  her. 
When  Octavius  entered  Egyjit  (32  b.  c.  ),  there  was  no  resist- 
ance. Antony,  in  despair,  stabbed  himself.  Cleopatra  in 
vain  tried  her  arts  of  fascination  upon  the  conqueror. 
Finally,  to  avoid  gracing  his  triumph  at  Rome,  she  put  an 
end  to  her  life,  according  to  the  common  story,  by  the  bite 
of  an  asp,  brought  in  a  basket  of  figs.  Thus  died  the  last 
of  the  Ptolemies. 

Result. — Egypt  now  became  a  province  of  Rome.  With 
the  battle  of  Actium,  ended  the  Roman  republic.  Caesar 
Octavius  was  the  undisputed  master  of  the  civilized  world. 
After  his  return  to  Italy,  he  received  the  title  of  Augustus, 
by  which  name  he  is  known  in  history.  The  Civil  Wars 
were  over. 

*  The  follies  and  wasteful  extravasance  of  their  mad  revels  at  Alexandria  almost 
surpass  belief.  One  day,  in  Antony's  kitchen,  there  are  said  to  have  been  eight  wild 
boars  roasting  whole,  so  arranged  as  to  be  ready  at  different  times,  that  his  dinner 
might  be  served  in  perfection  whenever  he  shonld  see  fit  to  order  it.  On  another 
ofca^ion,  he  and  the  queen  vied  as  to  which  could  serve  the  more  expensive  banquet. 
Removing  a  magniticent  pearl  from  her  ear,  she  dissolved  it  in  vinegar,  and  swal- 
lowed the  priceless  draught 


31  B.  C.J 


THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY. 


65 


IMPERIAL    ROME. 

Establishment  of  the  Empire. — After  the  clamor  of 
a  hundred  years,  a  s-\veet  silence  seemed  to  fall  upon  the 
earth.  The  temple  of  Janus  was  closed  for  the  second  time 
since  the  pious  ISTuma.  Warned  hy  the  fate  of  Julius, 
Augustus  did  not  take  the  name  of  king,  nor  startle  the 
Roman  prejudices  by  any  sudden  seizure  of  authority.     He 


ISIONS 


Bfi  ROME.  [31  B.  c- 

kept  up  all  the  forms  of  the  republic.  Every  ten  years,  he 
went  through  the  farce  of  laying  down  his  rank  as  chief  of 
the  army,  or  imperator — a  word  since  contracted  to  emperor. 
He  professed  himself  the  humble  servant  of  the  senate, 
while  he  really  exercised  absolute  power.  Gradually,  all  the 
offices  of  trust  were  centered  in  him.  He  became  at  once 
proconsul,  consul,  censor,  tribune,  and  high  priest.* 

Massacre  of  Varus  (9  a.  d.). — Germany,  under  the 
vigorous  rule  of  Drusus  and  Tiberius,  stepsons  of  Augustus, 
now  seemed  likely  to  become  as  thoroughly  Romanized 
as  Gaul  had  been.  [Brief  Hist.  France,  p.  11.)  Varus, 
govei'nor  of  the  province,  thinking  the  conquest  complete, 
attempted  to  introduce  the  Latin  language  and  laws.  There- 
upon, Arminius,  a  noble,  freedom-loving  German,  aroused 
his  countrymen,  and  in  the  wilds  of  the  Teutoburg  Forest 
took  a  terrible  revenge  for  the  wrongs  they  had  suffered. 
Varus  and  his  entire  army  perished.  Dire  was  the  dismay 
at  Eome  when  news  came  of  this  disaster.  For  days, 
Augustus  wandered  through  his  palace,  beating  his  head 
against  the  wall,  and  crying,  "Varus,  give  me  back  my 
legions  !"  Six  years  later,  the  whitened  bones  of  these  hap- 
less warriors  were  buried  by  Germanicus  (the  son  of  Drusus, 
and  step-son  of  Augustus),  but  with  all  his  genius  he  could 
not  restore  the  Eoman  authority  in  Germany, f 

The  Augustan  Age  (31  b.  c.-14  a.d.)  was,  however,  one 
of  general  peace  and  prosperity.     The  emperor  lived  unos- 

*  As  consul,  he  became  chief  magistrate  ;  as  censor,  he  could  decide  who  were  to 
be  senators  ;  as  tribune,  he  heard  appeals,  and  his  person  was  sacred  ;  as  imperator, 
he  commanded  the  army  ;  and,  as  pontifex  maximus,  or  chief  priest,  he  was  the  head 
of  the  national  religion.  These  were  powers  originally  belonging  to  the  king,  but 
which,  during  the  republic,  from  a  fear  of  centralization,  had  been  distributed  among 
different  persons.    Now  the  emperor  gathered  them  up  again. 

t  Creasy  reckons  this  among  the  twelve  decisive  battles  of  the  world.  "  Had 
Arminius  been  defeated,"  says  Arnold,  "  our  German  ancestors  would  have  been  en- 
slaved or  exterminated,  and  the  great  English  nation  would  have  been  struck  out  of 
existence." 


14  a.  D.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORf.  67 

tentatiouslj  in  his  liouse,  not  in  a  palace,  and  his  toga  was 
woven  by  his  wife  Livia  and  her  maidens.  He  revived  the 
worship  of  the  gods.  His  chosen  friends  were  men  of 
letters.  He  beautified  Eome,  so  that  he  could  truly  boast 
that  he  ''found  the  city  of  brick,  and  left  it  of  marble." 
There  was  now  no  fear  of  pirates  or  hostile  fleets,  and  grain 
came  in  plenty  from  Egvpt.  The  people  were  amused  and 
fed  ;  hence  they  were  contented.  The  provinces  were  well 
governed,*  and  many  gained  Eoman  citizenship.  A  single 
lanoT-iajjo  became  a  universal  bond  of  intercourse,  and  Eome 
began  her  work  of  civilization  and  education.  "Wars  having 
so  nearly  ceased,  and  interest  in  politics  having  diminished, 
men  turned  their  thoughts  more  toward  literature,  art,  and 
religion. 

The  Birth  of  Christ,  the  central  figure  in  all  history, 
occurrcii  during  the  wide-spread  peace  of  this  reign. 

The  Empire  was,  in  general,  bounded  by  the  Euphrates 
on  the  east,  the  Danube  and  the  Rhine  on  the  north,  the 
Atlantic  Ocean  on  the  west,  and  the  deserts  of  Africa  on  the 
south.  It  comprised  about  a  hundred  millions  of  people,  of 
perhaps  a  hundred  different  nations,  each  speaking  its  own 
language  and  worshipping  its  own  gods.  An  army  of  three 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  men  held  the  provinces  in  check, 
while  the  Prastorian  Guard  of  ten  thousand  protected  the 
person  of  the  cmporor.  The  Mediterranean,  Avhich  the 
Romans  proudly  called,  "  Our  own  sea,"  served  as  a  natural 
highway  between  the  Avidely-sundered  parts  of  this  vast 
region,  while  the  Roman  roads,  straight  as  an  eagle's  flight, 
bound  every  portion  of  the  empire  to  its  center.  Every- 
where, tiie  emperor's  will  Avas  law.     His  smile  or  frown  was 

•  One  day  when  Aa^iistus  was  Hailint;  in  Hk;  Buy  of  Baite,  a  Greek  nhip  wns  pasB- 
Ini».  The  fuilori',  pcrccivin;,'  the  cinpcror.  stopped  tli'ir  vessel,  iirraycd  tlieniselves  In 
white  robeu,  and  going  on  hoard  hi«  yaelit,  olTetcil  siicriflce  to  him  as  a  god,  haying, 
"You  have  t'ivtii  t<j  um  liappinesH.    You  have  secured  to  us  our  lives  and  our  good*  " 


68 


ROME 


[1st  cent.  a.  d. 


the  fortune  or  ruin  of  a  man,  a  city,  or  a  province.     His 
character  determined  the  prosperity  of  the  empire. 

Henceforth,  the  history  of  Rome  is  not  that  of  the  people, 
but  of  its  emperors.  *  In  the  following  pages,  a  brief  account 
is  given  of  the  principal  monarchs  only  ;  a  full  list  of  the 
emperors  may  be  found,  however,  on  page  121.  None  of 
the  early  emperors  was  followed  by  his  own  son,  but,  accord- 
ing to  the  Roman  law  of  adoption,  they  all  counted  as 
Caesars.  Nero  was  the  last  of  them  at  all  connected  with 
Augustus,  even  by  adoption,  though  the  emperors  called 
themselves  Caesar  and  Augustus  to  the  last.  After  the  death 
of  Augustus, 


COIN    OF  TIBERIUS   C^SAR. 


Tiberius  (14  a.  d.),  his  rtep-son,  cecured  the  empire  by 
a  decree  of  the  senate.     The  army  on  the  Rhine  would  have 

*  "  Of  the  sixty-two  emperors  from  Coesar  to  Constantine,  forty-two  were  murdered, 
three  committed  suicide,  two  abdicated  or  were  forced  to  abdicate,  one  was  killed  iii 
a  rebellion,  one  was  drowned,  one  died  in  war,  one  died  it  is  not  known  how,  and  no 
more  than  eleven  died  in  the  way  of  nature.  Between  the  death  of  Caesar  and  the 
accession  of  Constantine.  three  hundred  and  nineteen  years  elapsed,  giving  to  each 
CiB.3ar  an  average  reiijn  of  five  years  and  two  months.  Comparing  this  rate  of  im- 
perial mortality  against  the  usual  terms  of  royal  lives,  the  waste  appe.irs  most  strik- 
ing. The  thirty-five  sovereigns  of  England  (omitting  Cromwell  as  not  affecting  the 
return)  since  the  Conquest  have  '  lived  in  the  purple '  seven  hundred  and  eighty-seven 
years— an  average  of  over  twenty-two  years  and  five  months.  The  kings  of  France, 
fio:n  Clovis  to  Louis  Philippe,  reigned,  on  the  average,  twenty-two  years  and  two 
months.  The  German  emperors,  from  the  accession  of  Arnulf  to  the  accession  of 
Francis  Joseph,  each  reigned  nineteen  years  and  three  months.  Even  the  czars  of 
Bussia,  from  Fedor  to  Nicholas,  ruled  for  fourteen  years  and  ten  mouths  each."— Al/i. 


14  A.  D.J  THE     POLITICAL     U  x  S  T  O  R  Y  .  69 

gladly  given  the  throne  to  the  noble  Germanicus,  but 
he  declined  the  honor.  Jealous  of  his  kinsman,  Tiberius, 
it  is  thought,  afterw'ard  removed  him  by  poison.  The 
new  emperor  ruled  for  a  time  with  much  ability,  yet  soon 
proved  to  be  a  gloomy  tyrant,*  and  finally  retired  to  the 
island  of  Caprea?,  to  practice  in  secret  his  infamous  orgies. 
His  favorite,  the  cruel  and  ambitious  Seja'nus,  prefect  of 
the  Praetorian  Guard,  remained  at  Eome  as  the  real  ruler, 
but,  having  conspired  against  his  master,  he  was  thrown 
into  the  Mamertine  prison  and  there  strangled.  Many  of 
the  best  citizens  fell  \'ictim3  to  the  emperor's  suspicious 
disposition,  and  all,  even  the  surviving  members  of  his  own 
family,  breathed  easier  when  news  came  of  his  sudden 
death. 

The  great  event  of  this  reign  was  the  crucifixion  of  Christ  f 
at  Jerusalem,  under  Pilate,  Koman  procurator  of  Judea. 

Caligula  J  (3?  a.  d.)  inherited  some  of  his  father's  virtues, 
but  he  was  weak-minded,  and  his  history  records  only  a 
madman's  freaks.  He  made  his  favorite  horse  a  consul,  and 
provided  him  a  golden  manger.  Any  one  at  whom  the 
emperor  nodded  his  head  or  jjointed  his  finger  was  at  once 
executed.  "  Would,"  said  he,  '*'  that  all  the  people  at  Rome 
had  but  one  neck,  so  I  could  cut  it  off  at  a  single  blow." 

Nero  (54  a.  d.)  assassinated  his  mother  and  wife.  In  the 
midst  of  a  great  fire  which  destroyed  a  large  part  of  IJomo, 
he  chanted  a  poem  to  the  music  of  his  lyre,  while  he 
watched  the  flames.  To  secure  himself  against  the  charge 
of  having  at  least  spread  the  fire,  he  ascribed  the  confla- 

•  nis  character  resembled  that  of  Louis  XI.    See  Brief  History  of  France,  p.  94. 

+  Over  lii!<  crofs  was  an  infcriplioii  in  tlirec  laniniai,'ci»,  Hitjiiificaiit  of  ttic  three 
b'-Ht  development-*  then  icnown  of  ilie  liuraan  race — liuMAN  law,  Greek  mind,  and 
Hebrew  paito. 

%  Cainf.  con  of  f;ormanicu''and  Aerippina— ;;mnd-fiaiij»btoror  Ancii^tus— rcoivcd 
from  the  ^-oldiers  ttie  nickname  of  C.ilitrnla,  by  wliich  ho  i«  nlwavH  known,  1>ecause 
be  wore  little  boote  {callguia)  while  with  his  father  in  camp  on  the  Rhine, 


70 


BOME. 


[1st  cent.  a.  d 


gration  to  the  Christians.  These  were  cruelly  persecuted/-' 
St.  Paul  and  St.  Peter,  according  to  tradition,  being  mar- 
tyred at  this  time.  In  rebuilding  the  city,  Nero  substi- 
tuted broad  streets  for  the  winding  lanes  in  the  hollow 
between  the  seven  hills,  and  erected,  in  place  of  unsightly 
piles  of  brick  and  wood,  handsome  stone  buildings,  each 
block  surrounded  by  a  colonnade. 


COIN   OF   NERO. 


Vespasian  (69  a.  d.)  was  made  emperor  by  his  army  in 
Judea.  An  old-fashioned  Roman,  he  sought  to  revive  the 
ancient  virtues  of  honesty  and  frugality.  His  son  Titus, 
after  the  capture  of  Jerusalem  (p.  234),  shared  the  throne 
with  his  father,  and  finally  succeeded  to  the  empire.  His 
generosity  and  kindness  won  him  the  name  of  the  Delight 
of  Manhind.  He  refused  to  sign  a  death-warrant,  and  jDro- 
nounced  any  day  lost  in  which  he  had  not  done  some  one  a 
favor.  During  this  happy  period,  the  famous  Colosseum  at 
Rome  was  finished,  and  Agricola  conquered  nearly  all 
Britain,  making  it  a  Roman  province  ;   but  Pompeii  and 


*  Some  were  crncifled.  Some  were  covered  with  the  skins  of  wild  beasts,  and 
worried  to  death  by  dogs.  Some  were  thrown  to  the  tigers  and  lions  in  the  amphi- 
theatre. Gray-haired  men  were  forced  to  fight  with  trained  gladiators.  Worst  of  all, 
one  nisrht  Nero's  gardens  were  lighted  by  Christians,  who,  their  clothes  having  been 
smeared  with  pitch  and  ignited,  were  placed  as  blazing  torches  along  the  course  on 
which  the  emperor,  heedless  of  their  agony,  drove  his  chariot  in  the  races. 


79  a.  D.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  71 

Herculaneum  were  destroyed  by  an  eriiptioa  of  Mount 
Vesuvius. 

Domitian  *  (81  a.  d.)  was  a  second  Nero  or  Caligula.  His 
chief  amusement  was  in  spearing  flies  with  a  pin  ;  yet  he 
styled  liimseK  •"  Lord  and  God/'  and  received  divine  honors. 
He  banished  the  philosophers,  and  rencAved  the  persecution 
of  the  Christians.  At  this  time,  St.  John  was  exiled  to  the 
isle  of  Patmos. 

The  Five  Good  Emperors  (9G-180  a.  d.)  now  brought 
in  the  palmiest  days  of  Eome.  Nerva,  a  quiet,  honest  old 
man,  distributed  lands  among  the  plebs,  and  taught  them  to 
work  for  a  living.  Trajan,  a  great  Spanish  general,  con- 
quered the  Dacians  and  many  Eastern  peoples ;  founded 
public  libraries  and  schools  in  Italy  ;  and  tried  to  restore 
freedom  of  speech  and  simplicity  of  life,  f  Hadrian  traveled 
almost  incessantly  over  his  vast  empire,  overseeing  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  provinces,  and  erecting  splendid  buildings. 
Antoninus  Pins  was  a  second  Numa,  by  his  love  of  justice 
and  religion  diffusing  the  blessings  of  peace  and  order  over 
the  civilized  world.  Atirelius  X  was  a  philosopher  and  loved 
fjuiet.  But  the  time  of  peace  had  passed.  The  Germans, 
pressed  by  the  Slaves  who  lived  in  Eussia,  fled  before  them, 
and  crossed  the  Roman  frontiers  as  in  the  time  of  Marius. 
The  emperor  was  forced  to  take  the  field  in  person,  and  died 
during  the  eiglitli  winter-campaign. 

Decline  of  the  Empire.— The  most  virtuous  of  men 
was  succeeded  by  his  son  Commodus,  a  weak,  vicious  boy. 
An   era  of   military  despotism  ensued.      Murder  became 

•  Domitian  Is  Mid  to  have  once  called  together  the  senate  to  decide  how  a  fish 
etioulil  be  cooked  for  lii.i  dinner. 

t  Two  centiiricH  ufterward,  at  tlie  accession  of  each  emperor,  (he  senate  wished 
that  hu  mi_'ht  bi;  "  more  foriniiute  than  Auj,'ustus,  more  virtiiotm  ihuti  Trajan." 

X  M.  AureliuH  wa.s  llie  adopted  son  of  Anloniiiu.'i,  and,  ufler  llie  death  &f  his 
adoptive  father,  asBunied  bit)  uamc,  bo  that  ibis  period  iu  kiiowD  as  the  Age  qf  thi 
AiUoninca- 


72  ROME.  [180  A.  D. 

domesticated  in  the  palace  of  the  Caesars.  The  Praetorian 
Guards  put  up  the  iinperial  power  at  auction,  and  sold  it  to 
the  highest  bidder.  The  armies  in  the  provinces  declared 
for  their  favorite  officers,  and  the  throne  became  the  stake 
of  battle.  Few  of  the  long  list  of  emperors  who  succeeded 
to  the  throne  are  worthy  of  mention. 

Septimius  Seve'rus  (193  a.  d,),  a  general  in  Germany, 
after  defeating  his  rivals,  ruled  vigorously,  though  often 
cruelly.  His  triumphs  in  Parthia  and  Britain  renewed  the 
glory  of  the  Eoman  arras. 

Car'acal'lus  (211  a.  d.)  would  be  remembered  only  for 
his  ferocity,  but  that  he  gave  the  right  of  Roman  citizenship 
to  all  the  provinces,  in  order  to  tax  them  for  the  benefit  of 
his  soldiers.  This  event  marked  an  era  in  the  history  of 
the  empire,  and  greatly  lessened  the  importance  of  Rome. 

Alexander  Seve'rus  (232  a.  d.)  deliglited  in  the  society 
of  the  wise  and  good.  He  favored  the  Christians,  and  over 
the  door  of  his  palace  were  inscribed  the  words,  ''Do  unto 
others  that  which  you  Avould  they  should  do  unto  you."  He 
won  glorious  victories  against  the  Germans  and  Persians, 
but,  attempting  to  establish  discipline  in  the  army, 
was  slain  by  his  mutinous  troops  while  he  was  yet  only  in 
the  bloom  of  youth. 

The  Barbarian  G-oths,  Germans,  and  Persians,  who 
had  so  long  threatened  the  empire,  invaded  it  on  every  side. 
The  emperor  Decius  was  killed  in  battle  by  the  Goths. 
Gallus  bought  peace  by  an  annual  tribute.  Valerian  was 
taken  prisoner  by  the  Persian  king,  who  carried  him  about 
in  chains,  and  used  him  as  a  footstool  in  mounting  his  horse. 
The  temple  at  Ephesus  was  burned  at  this  time  by  the  Goths. 
During  the  general  confusion,  so  many  usurpers  sprang  up 
over  the  empire  and  established  short-lived  kingdoms,  that 
this  is  known  as  the  Era  of  the  Thirty  Tyrants. 


§68  A.  D.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  '5'3 

The  Illyrian  Emperors  (268-284  a.  d.),  however,  rolled 
back  the  tide  of  invasion.  Claudius  vanqi^ished  the  Goths 
in  a  contest  which  recalled  the  days  of  Marius  and  the  Gauls. 
Aurelian  drove  the  Germans  into  their  native  wilds,  and  de- 
feated Zenobia,  the  beautiful  and  heroic  Queen  of  Palmyra, 
bringing  her  to  Rome  in  chains  of  gold  to  grace  his  triumph. 
F rob  us  triumphed  at  the  East  and  the  West,  and,  turning  to 
the  arts  of  peace,  introduced  the  vine  into  Germany,  and 
taught  the  legions  to  work  in  -sineyard  and  field.  Diode' tian 
began  a  new  method  of  government.  To  meet  the  swarm- 
ing enemies  of  the  empire,  he  associated  with  himself  his 
comrade-in-arms,  Maximian ;  each  emperor  took  the  title  of 
Augustus,  and  appointed,  under  the  name  of  Caesar,  a  brave 
general  as  his  successor.  War  raged  at  once  in  Persia, 
Egj-pt,  Britain,  and  Germany,  but  the  four  rulers  vigilantly 
watched  over  their  respective  provinces,  and  the  Roman 
eagles  conquered  every  foe. 

In  the  year  303  A.  d.,  the  joint  emperors  celebrated  the 
last  triumph  ever  held  at  Rome.  During  the  same  year,  also, 
began  the  last  and  most  bitter  persecution  of  the  Christians,* 
so  that  this  reign  is  called  the  Era  of  the  Martyrs. 

Spread  of  Christianity. — The  religion  established  in 
Jiidca  by  Christ,  and  preached  during  the  1st  century  by 
Paul  and  the  other  Apostles  (see  Acts  of  the  Apostles),  had 
now  spread  over  the  western  empire.  It  was  largely,  how- 
ever, confined  to  the  cities,  as  is  curiously  shown  in  the  fact 
tliat  the  word  pagan  originally  meant  only  a  countryman. 
While  the  Romans  tolerated  the  religious  belief  of  every 
nation  wliich  they  conquered,  they  persecuted  the  Christians 
alone.     This  w;ia  because  the  latter  opposed  the  national 

*  In  306  A.  D.,  both  cmperorH  resigned  the  pnrple.  Diocletian  amused  himself  by 
workinj;  in  bin  garden,  and  when  Maximian  nought  to  draw  him  out  of  his  retire- 
ment, lie  wrote:  "  If  you  could  hoc  the  cabl):i;,'en  I  Imvo  |)laiitud  with  my  own  hand, 
yon  would  never  aok  me  to  remount  the  throne." 


74  ROME.  [4th  cent.  a.  d. 

religion  of  the  empire,  refused  to  offer  sacrifice  to  its  gods, 
and  to  worship  its  emperors.  Moreover,  the  Christians 
absented  themselves  from  the  games  and  feasts,  and  were 
accustomed  to  hold  their  meetings  at  night,  and  often  in 
secret.  They  were  therefore  looked  upon  as  enemies  of  the 
state,  and  were  persecuted  by  even  the  best  rulers,  as  Trajan 
and  Diocletian.  This  opposition,  however,  served  only  to 
strengthen  the  rising  faith.  The  heroism  of  the  martyrs 
extorted  the  admiration  of  their  enemies.  Thus,  when  Poly- 
carp  was  hurried  before  the  tribunal  and  urged  to  curse 
Christ,  he  exclaimed  "  Eighty-six  years  have  I  served  Him, 
and  He  has  done  me  nothing  but  good  ;  how  could  I  curse 
Him,  my  Lord  and  Saviour."  And  when  the  flames  rose 
around  him  he  thanked  God  that  he  was  deemed  worthy  of 
such  a  death.  With  the  decaying  empire,  heathenism  grew 
weaker,  while  Christianity  gained  strength.  As  early  as  the 
reign  of  Septimius  Severus,  Tertullian  declared  that  if  the 
Christians  were  forced  to  emigrate,  the  empire  would  become 
a  desert. 

Loss  of  Roman  Prestige. — Men  no  longer  looked  to 
Rome  for  their  citizenship.  The  army  consisted  principally 
of  Gauls,  Germans,  and  Britons,  who  were  now  as  good  Eo- 
mans  as  any.  The  emperors  were  of  provincial  birth.  The 
wars  kept  them  on  the  frontiers,  and  Diocletian,  it  is  said, 
had  never  seen  Rome  until  he  came  there  in  the  twentieth 
year  of  his  reign  to  celebrate  his  triumph.  His  gorgeous 
Asiatic  court,  with  its  pompous  ceremonies  and  its  king 
wearing  the  hated  crovm,  was  so  ridiculed  in  Rome  by 
song  and  lampoon  that  the  monarch  never  returned.  His 
headquarters  were  kept  at  Kicomedia  (Bithynia)  in  Asia 
Minor,  and  Maximian's  at  Milan. 

Constantine,  the  Caesar  in  Britain,  having  been  pro- 
claimed Augustus  by  his  troops,  overthrew  five  rivals  who 


324  A,  D.]  THE     POLITICAL     HISTORY.  'J'5 

contested  the  throne,  and  became  sole  ruler  (324  a.d.).  His 
reign  marked  an  era  iu  the  world's  history.  It  was  charac- 
terized by  three  changes  :  1.  Ohi-istianity  became,  in  a 
sense,  the  state-religion.*  2.  The  capital  was  removed  to 
Byzantium,  a  Greek  city,  afterward  known  as  Constantinople 
(Constantino's  city).  3.  The  monarchy  was  made  an  abso- 
lute despotism,  the  army  being  remodeled  so  as  to  weaken 
its  power,  and  a  court  established,  with  its  titled  nobility, 
who  received  tlwir  honors  directly  from  the  emjaeror,  and 
took  rank  with,  if  not  the  place  of,  the  former  consul, 
senator,  or  patrician. 

The  First  General  ((Ecumenical)  Council  of  the  church 
was  held  at  Nice  (325  A.  d.),  to  consider  the  teachings  of 
Arius,  a  priest  of  Alexandria,  who  denied  the  divinity  of 
Christ. 

Christianity  soon  conquered  the  empire.  The  emperor 
Julian,  the  Apostate,  an  excellent  man  though  a  pagan 
philosopher,  sought  to  restore  the  old  religion,  but  in  vain. 
The  best  intellects,  repelled  from  political  discussion  by  the 
tyranny  of  the  government,  turned  to  the  consideration  of 
theological  questions.  This  was  especially  true  of  the  Eastern 
church,  where  the  Greek  mind,  so  fond  of  metaphysical 
subtleties,  was  predominant. 

Barbarian  Invasions. — In  the  latter  part  of  the  4th 
century,  a  liust  of  savage  IIun.s,f  bursting  into  Europe,  drove 

*  According  to  the  legend,  when  Constantino  wa''  marching  against  Maxentius, 
the  rival  Augiisdm  at  Rome,  he  t^aw  in  the  sl<y  at  midday  a  flaming  (T()SH,and  beneath 
It  the  words  In  this  conqiiek  !  Constantiiie  accepii'cl  the  nrw  faith,  and  asHiimed 
the  Htandard  of  the  cross,  which  was  lienceforth  borne  by  tlie  Christian  emperors. 

t  The  Iliins  were  a  Turanian  race  from  Asia.  They  were  short,  thick-set,  with 
flat  noHCH,  deep-Biink  eyes,  and  a  yellow  complexion.  Their  faces  were  hideously 
pcarred  with  Blashesto  ))revcntthe  growliiof  the  beard.  Aliistorian  of  the  time  com- 
pared them  in  their  ugliness  to  the  grinning  heads  clumsily  carved  on  the  posts  of 
bridges.  They  built  no  cilles  or  houses,  and  never  came  under  a  roof  exce|)t  in 
HuperstltiouH  dread.  They  were  rind  in  skins,  whii:li  were  never  changed  until  they 
rotted  off.  They  lived  on  horseback,  carrying  their  families  and  all  their  iJOUBOUBions 
Id  huge  wagona. 


76  ROME.  [378  A. D. 

the  Teutons  in  terror  before  them.  The  frightened  Goths  * 
obtained  permission  to  cross  the  Danube  for  an  asykim,  and 
soon  a  million  of  these  wild  warriors  stood  sword  in  hand 
on  the  Roman  territory.  They  were  assigned  lands  in 
Thrace  ;  but  the  ill-treatment  of  the  Eoman  officials  drove 
them  to  ai'ms.  They  defeated  the  emperor  Valens  in  a 
terrible  battle  near  Adrianople,  the  monarch  himself  being- 
burned  to  death  in  a  peasant's  cottage,  where  he  had  been 
carried  wounded.  The  victorious  Goths  pressed  forward  to 
the  very  gates  of  Constantinople. 

Theodosius  the  Great,  a  Spaniard,  raised  from  a  farm 
to  the  throne,  stayed  for  a  few  years  the  inevitable  progress 
of  events.  He  pacified  the  Goths,  and  enlisted  forty 
thousand  of  their  warriors  under  the  eagles  of  Rome.  He 
forbade  the  worship  of  the  old  gods,  and  tried  to  put  down 
the  Arian  heresy,  so  prevalent  at  Constantinople.  At  his 
death  (395  a.  d.),  the  empire  was  divided  between  his  two 
sons. 

Henceforth,  the  histories  of  the  Eastern  or  Byzantine  and 
the  Western  Empire  are  separate.  The  former  is  to  go  on 
at  Constantinople  for  one  thousand  years,  while  Rome  is 
soon  to  pass  into  the  hands  of  the  barbarians. 

The  5th  Century  is  known  as  the  Era  of  the  Great 
Migration.  During  this  period,  Europe  was  turbulent  with 
the  movements  of  the  restless  Germans.  Pressed  by  the 
Huns,  the  different  tribes — the  East  and  West  Goths,  Franks, 
Alans,  Vandals,  Burgundians,  Longobards  (Lombards),  Al- 
lemanns.  Angles,  Saxons — poured  south  and  west  with  irre- 

*  The  Goths  were  already  somewhat  advanced  in  civilization  through  their  inter- 
course with  the  Romans,  and  we  read  of  Gothic  leaders  who  were  "judges  of  Homer, 
and  carried  well-chosen  bool^s  with  them  on  their  travels."  Under  the  teachings  of 
their  good  bishop  Ul'philas,  many  accepted  Christianity,  and  the  Bible  was  translated 
into  their  langiia<;o.  They,  however,  became  Arians,  and  so  a  new  element  of  discord 
was  introduced,  as  they  iiated  the  Catholic  Christians  of  Rome.  See  Brief  History 
of  France,  p.  14. 


THE      POLITICAL     HISTOKY.  77 

sistible  lury,  arms  in  hand,  seekiug  new  homes  in  the 
crumbling  Eoman  empire.  It  was  nearly  two  centuries 
before  the  turmoil  subsided  enough  to  note  the  changes 
which  had  taken  place. 

Three  Great  Barbaric  Leaders,  Alaric  the  Goth, 
Attila  the  llun.  and  Genseric  the  Vandal,  were  conspicuous 
in  the  grand  catastrophe. 

I.  Alaric  having  been  chosen  prince  of  the  Goths,  after 
the  death  of  Theodosius,  passed  the  defile  of  Thermopylae, 
aud  devastated  Greece,  destroying  the  precious  monuments 
of  its  former  glory.  Sparta  and  Athens,  once  so  brave,  made 
uo  defence.  He  was  finally  driven  back  l)y  Stilicho,  a  Van- 
dal, but  the  only  great  Roman  general.  Alaric  next  moved 
upon  Italy,  but  was  repeatedly  repulsed  by  the  watchful 
Stilicho.  The  Eoman  emperor  Honorius,  jealous  of  his 
successful  general,  ordered  his  execution.  When  Alaric 
came  again,  there  was  no  one  to  oppose  his  progress.  All 
the  barbarian  Germans,  of  every  name,  joined  his  victorious 
arms.  Rome  *  bought  a  brief  respite  with  a  ransom  of  "  gold, 
silver,  silk,  scarlet  cloth,  and  pepper";  but  the  Eternal 
City,  which  had  not  seen  an  enemy  before  its  walls  since  the 
dav  when  it  defied  Hannibal,  soon  fell  without  a  blow  (410 
A.  1). ).  No  Horatius  was  there  to  hold  the  bridge  in  this 
honr  of  i)eril.  The  gates  were  thrown  open,  and  at  midnight 
the  Gothic  trumpet  awoke  the  inhabitants.  For  six  days 
the   barl>arians   held    high    revel,   and    then    then*   clumsy 

*  "  Koine,  at  tliU  time.  contJiiiied  probably  a  millioi.  of  inbal)ii!iiils,  and  its  wealth 
might  well  ailract  tliL-  cui)i(lity  of  the  barbaroug  invader.  The  palaces  of  the  senators 
were  filled  with  t,'old  and  silver  ornaments — the  prize  of  many  a  bloody  eampaijiu. 
Thc!  churches  were  rich  with  the  contributions  of  pions  worshippers.  On  the;  en- 
trance of  itio  Goths,  a  fearful  scene  of  pillage  ensued.  Iloiises  were  fired  to  lin;lii  the 
streets.  Great  numbers  of  citizens  were  driven  off  to  be  sold  as  slaves  ;  while  others 
fled  to  Africa,  or  the  Islands  of  thc  M<diicrranean.  .Marie  being  an  .Nrian,  tried  to 
save  the  churches,  as  well  as  the  city,  from  destruction.  But  now  benan  that  swift 
decay  which  soon  reduced  Rome  to  lieaps  of  ruins,  aud  rendered  the  title  'The 
Eternal  City  '  a  sad  mockery." — Smith, 


78 


ROME. 


wagons,  heaped  high  with  priceless  plunder,  moved  south 
along  the  Appian  Way.  Alaric  died  soon  after.*  His  suc- 
cessor married  the  sister  of  the  emperor, f  and  was  styled 
an  officer  of  Eome.  Under  his  guidance,  the  Goths  and 
Germans  turned  westward  into  Spain  and  southern  Gaul. 
There  they  founded  a  powerful  Visigothic  kingdom,  with 
Toulouse  as  its  capital. 

2.  xittila,  king  of  the 
hideous  Huns,  gathering 
a  half  million  savages,  set 
forth  westward  from  his 
wooden  palace  in  Hungary, 
vowing  not  to  -stop  till  he 
reached  the  sea.  He  called 
himself  the  Scourge  of 
God,  and  boasted  that 
,  where  his  horse  set  foot 
i  grass  never  grew  again. 
On  the  field  of  Chalons 
(451  A.D.),  ^'tius  the  Ro- 
man general  in  Gaul,  and 
Theodoric  king  of  the 
Goths,  arrested  this  Tu- 
ranian horde,  and  saved 
ATTiLA.  Europe  to  Christianity  and 

Aryan  civilization.    Burn- 
ing with  revenge,  Attila  crossed  the  Alps  and  descended 


*  The  Golhs,  iu  order  to  hide  his  toml),  turned  aside  a  stream,  and,  digging  a 
grave  in  its  bed,  placed  therein  the  body,  clad  in  richest  armor.  They  then  let  the 
water  back,  and  slew  the  prisoners  who  had  done  the  work. 

+  During  this  disgraceful  campaign,  Honorius  lay  hidden  in  the  inaccessible 
morasses  of  Eavenna.  where  he  amused  himself  with  his  pet  chickens.  When  some 
one  told  him  Rome  was  lost,  he  replied,  "That  cannot  be,  for  I  fed  her  out  of  my 
hand  a  moment  ago,"  alluding  to  a  hen  which  he  called  Rome. 


THE      POLITICAL     HISTORY.  79 

into  Italy.  City  after  city  was  spoiled  and  burned.*  Just 
as  he  was  about  to  niarcli  upon  Eorae,  Pope  Leo  came  forth 
to  meet  him,  and  the  barbarian,  awed  by  his  majestic  mien 
and  the  glory  Avhich  yet  clung  to  that  seat  of  empire,  agreed 
to  spare  the  city.  Attila  returned  to  the  banks  of  the 
Danube,  where  he  died  shortly  after,  leaving  behind  him  in 
history  no  mark  save  the  ruin  he  had  wrought. 

3.  Gen'so.ric,  leading  across  into  Africa  the  Vandals,  who 
had  already  settled  the  province  of  FawfZ«?usia  in  southern 
Spain,  founded  an  empire  at  Carthage.  Wishing  to  revive 
its  former  maritime  greatness,  he  built  a  fleet  and  gained 
control  of  the  Mediterranean.  His  ships  cast  anchor  in  the 
Tiber,  and  the  intercessions  of  Leo  were  now  fruitless  to 
save  Rome.  For  fourteen  days,  the  pirates  plundered  the 
city  of  the  Caesars.  Works  of  art,  bronzes,  precious  marbles, 
were  rutblessly  destroyed,  so  that  the  word  Vandal  became 
synonymous  with  wanton  devastation. 

Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire  (476  a.  d.).— The  com- 
mander of  the  barbarian  troops  in  the  pay  of  Rome  now  set 
up  at  pleasure  one  puppet-emperor  after  another.  The  last 
of  these  phantom  monarchs,  Romulus  Augustulus,  by  a  sin- 
gular coincidence,  l)ore  the  names  of  the  founder  of  the  city, 
and  of  the  empire.  Finally,  at  the  command  of  Odo'acer, 
German  chief  of  the  mercenaries,  he  laid  down  his  useless 
sceptre.  The  senate  sent  the  tiara  and  purple  robe  to  Con- 
stantinople, and  Zeno,  the  Eastern  emperor,  appointed 
Odoacer  Patrician  of  JInhj.  So  the  AVestern  empire  passed 
away,  and  only  this  once  proud  title  remained  to  recall  its 
former  glory. 

•  Tlif  inliiiliitant- iif  A<|iiilola  and  other  cities,  scokitK,'  a  rcfiigo  in  the  Isliiiuls 
of  th(!  Adriatic,  founded  the  city  of  Venice,  Ally  named  Tlie  EldcHt  Daughter  of  the 
Empire. 


80 


ROME. 


ROMAN   CONSUL   AND    LICTORS. 


2.    THE    CIVILIZATION. 

Society. — The  early  Roman  social  and  political  organization  was 
similar  to  that  of  Athens.  The  true  Roman  people  comprised 
only  the  patricians  and  their  clients.  The  patricians  formed  the 
ruling  class,  and,  even  in  the  time  of  the  republic,  gave  to  Roman 
history  an  aristocratic  character.  Several  clients  were  attached  to 
each  patrician,  serving  his  interests,  and  in  turn,  being  protected 
by  him. 

The  three  original  tribes  of  patricians  (Ramnes,  Tities,  and 
Luceres)  were  each  divided  into  ten  curios.,  and  each  curia  theoreti- 
cally into  ten  gentes  (houses,  or  clans).  The  members  of  a  Roman 
curia,  or  ward,  like  those  of  an  Athenian  jjhratry^  possessed  many 
interests  in  common,  each  curia  having  its  own  priest  and  lands.  A 
gens    comprised   several    families,*  united  usually  by  kinship  and 


*  Contrary  to  the  custom  in  Greece,  where  family-names  were  seldom  used,  and  a 
man  was  generally  known  by  a  single  name  having  reference  to  some  personal  pecu- 
liarity or  private  circumstance,  every  Roman  was  given  three  names  :  the  prcenomen 
or  individual  name,  the  nomen  or  clan-name,  and  the  cognomen  or  family-name. 
Sometimes  a  fourth  name  was  added  to  commemorate  some  exploit.  Thus,  in  th-3 
case  of  Publius  Cornelius  Scipio  Afiicanus  and  his  brother,  Laelius  Cornelius  ScipiQ 
Asiaticus  (note.  p.  4.5),  we  recognize  all  these  titles. 


THE     CIVILIZATION".  81 

intermarriage,  and  bearing  the  same  name.  Besides  this  general 
organization,  each  family  formed  a  little  community  by  itself, 
governed  by  its  "paterfamilias,"  who  owned  all  the  property  and 
held  the  life  of  his  children  at  will.  The  sons  dwelt  under  the 
paternal  roof,  often  long  after  they  were  married,  and  cultivated  the 
family  estate  in  common. 

^Iagistrates. — The  consuls  commanded  the  army,  and  executed 
the  decrees  of  the  senate  and  the  people.  They  were  chosen  annually. 
Tliey  wore  a  white  robe  with  a  purple  border,  and  were  attended  by 
twelve  lictors  bearing  the  axe  and  rods,  emblems  of  the  consular 
l)ower.  At  the  approach  of  a  consul,  all  heads  were  uncovered, 
seated  persons  arose,  and  those  on  horseback  dismounted.  Xo  one 
was  eligible  to  the  consulship  until  he  was  forty-three  years  of  age, 
and  had  held  the  offices  of  questor,  aidile,  and  j^raetor. 

The  questors  received  and  jjuid  out  the  moneys  of  the  state. 

The  CBtliles,  two  (and,  afterward,  four)  in  number,  took  charge  of 
the  public  buildings,  the  cleaning  and  draining  of  the  streets,  and 
the  superintendence  of  the  police  and  the  public  games. 

The  jjrcetor  was  a  sort  of  judge.  At  first  there  was  only  one,  but, 
finally,  owing  to  the  increase  of  Roman  territory,  there  were  sixteen 
of  these  oflicers.  In  the  later  days  of  the  republic  it  became  custom- 
ary for  the  consuls  and  the  praetors,  after  serving  a  year  in  the  city, 
to  take  command  of  provinces,  and  to  assume  the  title  of  proconsul 
or  propra'tor. 

Tfie  two  cenaors  were  elected  for  five  years.  They  took  the  cen- 
sus, not  only  of  the  names  but  of  the  property  ol'  the  Roman  citizens ; 
arranged  the  different  classes  (p.  22j ;  corrected  the  lists  of  senators 
and  equites,  striking  out  those  who  were  unworthy,  and  filling  vacan- 
cies in  the  senate;  punished  extravagance  and  immorality;  levied 
the  taxes;  and  repaired  and  constructed  public  works,  roads,  etc. 

The  Army. — Every  citizen  between  the  ages  of  seventeen  and  fifty 
was  subject  to  military  service,  unless  lie  was  of  the  lowest  class,  or 
had  served  twenty  campaigns  in  the  infantry  or  ten  in  the  cavalry. 
The  drill  was  severe,  and  included  running,  jumping,  swimming  in 
full  armor,  and  marcliing  long  distances  at  the  rate  of  four  miles  per 
hour.  The  order  of  battle,  equipment,  etc.,  varied  at  diflferent  times. 
Among  the  peculiarities  were  the  four  classes  of  foot-soidiers,  viz. . 
the  veliten,  or  light  armed,  who  hovered  in  front ;  the  hastnti,  so-called 
Ijccause  they  anciently  carried  spears,  and  who  formed  the  first  line 
of  battle;  the  princijiex,  8o-name<l  because  in  early  times  tiiey  were 
put  in  fn)nt,  and  who  formed  the  .second  line;  and  the  triarii, 
veterans  who  composed  the  third  liue,     I:^uch  legiou  coutuiued  from 


82 


ROME, 


three  to  six  thousand  men.      The  legions  were  divided  and  sub- 
divided into  cohorts,  companies  (manipuli),  and  centuries. 

Aems  and  Modk  of  Warfare. — The  national  arm  of  the  Romans 
was  the  p/^M/«,  a  heavy  iron-pointed  sjjear,  six  feet  long,  and  weighing 
ten  or  eleven  pounds.  This  was  thrown  at  a  distance  of  ten  to 
fifteen  paces,  after  which  the  legionary  quickly  came  to  blows  with 
his  stout,  short  sword.  The  velites  began  the  battle  with  their 
light  javelins,  and  then  retired  behind  the  rest.  The  hastati,  the 
principes,  and  the  triarii,  each,  in  turn,  bore  the  brunt  of  the  fight,  and, 
if  defeated,  passed  through 
intervals  between  the  man- 
ipuli of  the  other  lines,  and 
rallied  in  the  rear.* 


SIEGE   OF  A  CITV. 


*  Later  in  Roman  history  the  soldier  ceased  to  be  a  citizen,  and  remained  con- 
otantly  with  the  eagles  until  discharged.    Marine  arranged  his  troops  in  two  lines, 


THE     CIVILIZATION.  83 

The  Romans  learned  from  the  Greeks  the  use  of  military  engines, 
and  finally  became  experts  in  the  art  of  sieges.  Their  principal 
machines  were  the  haUista  for  throwing  stones ;  the  catapult  for  hurl- 
iag  darts ;  the  battering  ram  (so  called  from  the  shape  of  the  metal 
head)  for  breaching  walls ;  and  the  movable  tower,  which  could  be 
pushed  close  to  the  fortifications  and  so  overlook  them. 

On  the  march  each  soldier  had  to  carry,  besides  his  arms,  grain 
enough  to  last  from  seventeen  to  thirty  days,  one  or  more  wooden 
stakes,  and,  often,  intrenching  tools.  "\^Tien  the  army  halted,  even 
for  a  single  night,  a  ditch  was  dug  about  the  site  for  the  camp,  and 
a  stout  palisade  made  of  the  wooden  stakes,  to  guard  against  a 
sudden  attack.  The  exact  size  of  the  camp,  and  the  location  of 
every  tent,  street,  etc.,  were  fixed  by  a  regular  plan  common  to  all 
the  armies. 

Literatoire. — For  about  five  centuries  after  the  founding  of 
Rome,  there  was  not  a  Latin  author.  When  a  regard  for  letters  at 
last  arose,  the  tide  of  imitation  set  irresistibly  toward  Greece.  Over 
two  centuries  after  ^schylus  and  Soi^hocles  contended  for  the 
Atheuian  prize,  Livius  Andronicvs,  a  Grecian-born  slave  (brought 
to  Rome  about  250  B.  c),  made  the  first  Latin  translation  of  Greek 
classics,  and  himself  wrote  and  acted*  plays  whose  insi^iration  was 
caught  from  the  same  source.  His  works  soon  became  text-books  in 
Roman  schools,  and  were  used  till  the  time  of  Virgil.  Imvius,  a 
soldier-poet,  "the  last  of  the  native  minstrels,''  patterned  after 
Euripides  in  tragedy,  and  Aristophanes  in  comedy.  The  Romans 
resented  the  exposure  of  their  national  and  individual  weaknesses 
on  the  stage,  sent  the  bold  satirist  to  prison,  and  finally  banished 
liim.  EnniuH,  "the  father  of  Latin  song,"  who  called  himself  the 
Roman  '"Homer,"  and  who  unblushingly  borrowed  from  his  great 
model,  decried  the  native  fashion  of  ballad-writing,  introduced 
hexameter  verse,  and   built   up  a  new  style  of  literature,  closely 

and  Cajnar  generally  in  three,  but  the  terms  haptatl,  principcw,  and  triarii  lost  their 
("igniflcance.  The  place  of  the  veliteH  was  taken  by  Cretan  archt'r«,  Balearic  slinfjers, 
and  Gallic  and  Ocrinan  mercenaries.  In  time,  the  army  was  filled  wiili  forcifjners  ; 
the  heavy  piluin  and  hreaHtplato  were  thrown  aside  ;  all  trace  of  Roniau  equipment 
and  discipline  disappeared,  and  the  legion  became  a  thing  of  the  past. 

•  For  a  lonif  time,  he  was  the  only  performer  In  these  dramas.  Tie  recited  the 
dialogues  and  speeches,  and  suns;  the  lyrics  to  the  accompaniment  of  a  flute.  So 
favorably  was  thi-  new  entertainment  received  by  Roman  aiidii-nces,  and  so  often 
was  the  successful  actor  enronri,  that  he  lo-t  his  voice,  and  was  ohlltrod  to  hire  a 
hoy,  who,  hidden  behind  a  curtain,  siin<,'  the  canlicas,  while  Livius.  in  front,  made 
the  ap|>ropriate  geRturcs.  This  custom  afterward  became  common  on  the  Romau 
Btagc. 


84  E  O  M  E  . 

founded  on  the  Grecian,*  His  Annals,  a  poetical  Roman  history, 
was  for  two  centuries  the  national  poem  of  Home.  Ennius,  unlike 
Naevius,  flattered  the  ruling  powers,  and  was  rewarded  by  liaving 
his  bust  placed  in  the  tomb  of  the  Sciioios.  Plautus  (354-184  b.  c), 
who  pictured  with  his  coarse,  vigorous,  and  brilliant  wit  the  man- 
ners of  his  day,  and  Terence  (195-159  b.  c),  a  learned  and  graceful 
humorist,  were  the  two  great  comic  poets  of  Rome.f  They  were 
succeeded  hj  Lueilius  (148-103  B.C.),  a  brave  soldier  and  famous 
knight,  whose  sharp,  fierce  satire  was  poured  relentlessly  on  Roman 
vice  and  folly. 

Among  the  early  prose  writers  was  Cato  the  Censor  (234-149  b,  c), 
son  of  a  Sabine  farmer,  who  became  famous  as  lawyer,  orator, 
soldier,  and  politician  (p.  45).  His  hand-book  on  agriculture,  He 
lie  Bnstica,  is  still  studied  by  farmers,  and  over  one  hundred  and 
fifty  of  his  strong,  rugged  orations  find  a  place  among  the  classics. 
His  chief  work,  The  Orlgines,  a  history  of  Rome,  is  lost. 

Varro  (116-38  B.C.),  "the  most  learned  of  the  Romans,"  first 
soldier,  then  farmer  and  author,  wrote  on  theology,  jihilosophy, 
history,  agriculture,  etc.  He  founded  large  libraries  and  a  museum 
of  sculpture,  cultivated  the  fine  arts,  and  sought  to  awaken  literary 
tastes  among  his  countrymen. 

To  the  last  century  b.  c.  belong  the  illustrious  names  of  Virgil 
and  Horace,  Cicero,  Livy,  and  Sallust.     First  in  order  of  birth  was 

CicerOjl  orator,  essayist,  and  delightful  letter-writer.     Most  elo- 

*  Ennius  claimed  that  the  soul  of  the  old  Greek  bard  had  in  its  transmigration 
entered  his  body  from  its  preceding  home  in  a  peacock.  He  so  impressed  his  intel- 
lectual personality  upon  the  Romans  that  they  were  sometimes  called  the  "Ennian 
People."  Cicero  greatly  admired  his  works,  and  Virgil  borrowed  as  unscrupulously 
from  Ennius,  as  Ennius  had  filched  from  Homer. 

t  It  is  noticeable  that  of  all  the  poets  we  have  mentioned,  not  one  was  bom  at 
Rome.  Livius  was  a  slave  from  Magna  Grsecia ;  Nsevius  was  a  native  of  Campania  ; 
Ennius  was  a  Calabrian,  who  came  to  Rome  as  a  teacher  of  Greek  ;  Plautus  (meaning 
flat-foot — his  name  being,  like  Plato,  a  sobriquet)  was  an  Umbrian,  the  son  of  a 
slave,  and  served  in  various  menial  employments  before  he  began  play-writing ;  and 
Terence  was  the  slave  of  a  Roman  senator.  To  be  a  Roman  slave,  however,  was  not 
incompatible  with  the  possession  of  talents  and  education,  since,  by  the  pitiless 
rules  of  ancient  warfare,  the  richest  and  most  learned  citizen  of  a  captured  town 
might  become  a  drudge  in  a  Roman  household,  or  be  sent  to  labor  in  the  mines. 

t  Marcus  Tullius  Cicero  (106  43  B.c  ),  son  of  a  book -loving,  country  gentleman, 
was  educated  at  Rome,  studied  law  and  philosophy  at  Athens,  traveled  two  years  in 
Asia  Minor,  and  then  settled  in  Rome  as  an  advocate.  Plunging  into  the  politics  of 
his  time,  he  soon  became  famous  for  his  thrilling  oratory,  and  was  made,  in  succes- 
sion, questor,  aedile,  praetor,  and  consul.  For  his  detection  of  Catiline's  conspiracy, 
he  received  the  title  of  Pater  Patrias.  His  subsequent  banishment,  recall,  and 
tMgic  death  are  historical  (p.  (i8).  Cicero  was  accused  of  being  vain,  vacillating, 
osamiable,  and  extravagant.    He  bad  an  elegant  mansion  on  the  Palatine  Hill  and 


TSE     CiVILIZATIOlf.  85 

quent  of  all  the  Romans,  bis  genius  was  not  exhausted  in  the  rude 
contests  of  the  forum  and  basilica,  but  his  thoughtful  political 
essays,  and  his  gossipy  letters,  are  esteemed  as  highly  as  his  brilliant 
orations.  He  studied  Greek  models,  and  his  four  orations  on  the 
Conspiracy  of  Catiline  rank  not  unfavorably  Av^th  the  Philippics  of 
Demosthenes.  Ilis  orations  were  used  for  lessons  in  Roman  schools 
before  he  died,  and,  with  his  essays,  Be  Bepuhlica,  De  Officiis,  and  De 
Senectute,  are  familiar  Latin  text-books  of  to-day. 

Sallust*  a  polished  historian  after  the  style  of  Thucydides,  holds 
his  literary  renown  by  two  short  works — The  Conspiracy  of  Catiline 
and  The  Jugurthine  TFar,  which  are  remarkable  for  their  condensed 
^dgor  and  vivid  portrayal  of  character. 

Virgil  f  and  Horace,  jjoet-friends  of  the  Augustan  Age,  are  well- 
known  to  us,  Virgil  left  ten  Eclogues  or  Bucolics,  in  which 
he  patterned  after  Theocritus,  a  celebrated  Sicilian  poet  of  the 
Alexandrian  Age ;  The  Georgics,  a  work  on  Roman  agriculture  and 
stock-breeding,  in  confessed  imitation  of  Hesiod's  Works  and  Days; 
and  the  ^neid,  modeled  upon  the  Homeric  poems.     His  tender, 

numerous  country  villas,  his  favorite  one  at  Tusculum  beinj^  buUt  on  the  plan  of  the 
Academy  at  Athens.  Here  he  walked  and  talked  with  his  friends  in  a  pleasant  imi- 
tation of  Aristotle,  and  here  he  had  a  magnificent  library  of  handsomely-bound 
volumes,  to  which  he  continually  added  rare  works,  copied  by  his  skillful  Greek 
slaves.  HLs  favorite  poet  was  Euripides,  whose  2/edea,  it  is  said,  he  was  reading 
when  he  was  overtaken  by  his  assassinators. 

*  Caius  Sailustlus  Criepus  (86-S4  b.  c),  who  was  expelled  from  the  senate  for 
immorality,  served  afterward  in  the  civil  war,  and  was  made  governor  of  Numidia 
by  Julius  Ca;sar.  He  grew  enormously  rich  on  his  provincial  plunderings,  and 
returned  to  Rome  to  build  a  magnificent  palace  on  the  edge  of  the  Campus  Martius, 
where,  in  the  midst  of  beautiful  gardens,  groves,  and  flowers,  he  devoted  his  remain- 
ing years  to  study  and  friendship. 

+  The  small  paternal  estate  n( PuUius  Yirgllius  Mara  (70-19  b.  c),  which  was 
confi."Cated  after  the  fall  of  the  republic,  was  restored  to  him  by  Augustus.  The 
young  country  poet,  who  had  been  educated  in  Cremona,  Milan,  and  Naples,  ex- 
pressed his  gratitude  for  the  imperial  favor  in  a  Bucolic  (shepherd-poem),  one  of 
Hcveral  addressed  to  various  friends.  Their  merit  and  novelty — for  they  were  the  first 
Latin  pastorals — attracted  the  notice  of  Miccenas,  the  confidential  adviser  of  the  em- 
peror; and,  ])resently,  "the  tall,  slouching,  somewhat  plebeian  figure  of  Virgil  was  seen 
among  the  brilliant  crowd  of  courtiers,  statesmen,  artists,  poets,  and  historians  who 
thronged  tlie  audience-chamber  of  the  popular  minister,"  in  his  sumptuous  palace  on 
the  E8quilin<!  Hill.  Majcenas,  whose  wealth  equaled  his  luxurious  tastes,  took  great 
delight  in  encouraging  men  of  letters,  being  himself  well  versed  in  Greek  and  Roman 
literature,  the  fine  arts,  and  natural  history.  Acting  upon  liis  advice,  Virgil  wrote 
the  Clfnrrj\ni.  upon  whieh  he  spent  seven  years.  The  /Kntid  was  written  to  please 
Augustu",  whose  niice«iry  It  traces  back  to  the  "  pious  .(Enoas"  of  Troy,  the  hero  of 
the  poem.  In  his  la«t  illness.  Virgil,  who  had  not  yet  polished  his  great  work  to  suit 
his  faMfldionx  fa«tcs,  would  have  destroyed  it  but  for  the  entn^aties  of  Ids  friends. 
In  arrordaiiee  with  l)!-*  dviiig  request,  he  was  burled  near  Nai)les,  where  his  tomb 
!b  still  sliown  above  the  Posllippo  Grotto. 


86  K  0  M  E . 

brilliant,  graceful,  musical  lines  are  on  the  tongue  of  every  Latin 
student.  The  ^neid  became  a  text-book  for  the  little  Romans  within 
fifty  years  after  its  author's  death,  and  has  never  lost  its  place  in  the 
school-room. 


Si 

CICERO,    VIRGIL,    HORACE,   AND   SALLUST. 


Horace*  in  his  early  writings,  imitated  Archilochus  and  Lucilius, 
and  himself  says: 

"  The  shafts  of  my  passion  at  random  I  flung. 
And,  dashing  headlong  into  petulant  rhyme, 
I  recked  neither  where  nor  how  fiercely  I  stung." 

-Ocfel.  15. 


*  Qidntus  Horatius  Flaccus  (65-8  b.  c).  "  the  wit  who  never  wounded,  the  poet 
who  ever  charmed,  the  friend  who  never  failed,"  was  the  son  of  a  freedman,  who 
gave  his  boy  a  thorough  Roman  education,  and  afterward  sent  him  to  Athens— still 
the  school  of  the  world.  Here  he  joined  the  army  of  Brutus,  but  after  the  defeat  at 
Philippi — where  his  want  of  bravery  was  only  too  conspicuous — he  returned  to 
Borne  to  find  his  father  dead,  and  all  his  little  fortune  confiscated.  Of  this  time, 
he  afterward  wrote : 

"  Want  stared  me  in  the  face  ;  so  then  and  there 
I  took  to  scribbling  verse  in  sheer  despair." 

The  proceeds  of  his  poems  and  the  gifts  of  friends  bought  him  a  clerkship  in  the 
qnestor'a  department,  and  made  him  modestly  independent.    Virgil  introduced  him 


THE     CIVILIZATION.  8? 

But  his  kind,  genial  nature  soon  tempered  this  "  petulant  rhyme." 
His  Satires  are  rambling,  sometimes  ironical,  and  always  witty,  dis- 
courses. Like  Virgil,  lie  loved  to  sing  of  country  life.  He  wrote 
laboriously,  and  carefully  studied  all  liis  meta^jhors  and  pbrases. 
His  Odes  have  a  consummate  grace  and  finish. 

Lity*  who  outlived  Horace  by  a  quarter  of  a  century,  wrote  one 
hundred  and  forty-two  volumes  of  Roman  History^  beginning  with 
the  fabulous  landing  of  ^neas,  and  closing  witli  the  death  of  Drusus 
(8  B.  c).  Thirty-five  volumes  remain.  His  grace,  enthusiasm,  and 
eloquence  make  his  pages  delightful  to  read,  though  he  is  no  longer 
accei:)ted  as  an  accurate  historian. 

The  First  Century  a.  d.  produced  the  two  Plinys,  Tacitus,  Juvenal, 
and  Seneca. 

Pliny  the  Elder  t  is  remembered  for  his  Xatural  History,  a  work 
of  thirty-seven  volumes,  covering  the  whole  range  of  the  scientific 
knowledge  of  his  time. 

Pliny  the  Younger,  the  charming  letter-writer,  and  Tacitus^  the 
orator  and  historian,  two  rich,  eloquent,  and  distinguished  noble- 
men, were  among  the  most  famous  uitellectual  men  of  their  time.  J 

to  Maecenas,  who  took  him  into  an  almost  romantic  friendship,  lasting  through 
life.  From  this  generous  patron,  he  received  the  gift  of  the  ••  Sabine  Farm,"'  to 
which  he  retired,  and  which  he  has  immortalized  by  his  descriptions.  He  died  a 
few  months  after  his  "  dear  knight  Maicenas,"  to  whom  he  had  declared  nearly  a  score 
of  years  before, 

"  Ah,  if  untimely  Fate  should  snatch  thee  hence, 

Thee,  of  my  soul  a  part," 
"  Think  not  that  I  have  sworn  a  bootless  oath, 
For  we  shall  go,  shall  go, 
Hand  linked  in  hand,  where'er  thou  leadest,  both 
The  last  sad  road  below." 
He  was  buried  on  the  Esquiline  Uill,  by  the  side  of  his  princely  friend. 
*  Tilus  Litius  (59  b.  C.-17  a.  d.).    Little  is  known  of  his  private  life  except  that 
he  was  the  friend  of  the  Cae.sars.    So  great  was  bis  renown  in  his  own  time  that,  ac- 
cording to  legend,  a  Spaniard  traveled  from  Cadiz  to  Kome  to  see  him,  looked  upon 
him,  and  contentedly  retraced  his  journey. 

+  Of  this  Pliny's  incessant  research,  his  nephew  (Pliny  the  Younger)  writes : 
"  From  the  twenty-third  of  August  he  began  to  study  at  midnight,  and  tlirough 
the  winter  he  rose  at  one  or  two  in  the  morning.  During  his  meals  a  book 
was  read  to  him,  he  taking  notes  while  it  went  on,  for  he  read  nothing  without 
niaking  extracts.  In  fact  be  tliouglit  all  time  lost  which  was  not  given  to  study." 
B«'sides  his  Natural  llistorj',  Pliny  the  Elder  wrote  over  si.\ty  books  on  Ilistoiy, 
Rhetoric,  Education,  and  .Military  Tactics  ;  he  also  left  "one  hundred  and  sixty 
volumes  of  Extracts,  written  on  both  sides  of  the  leaf,  and  in  the  minutest  hand." 
nis  cagemess  to  learn  cost  him  his  life,  for  he  |)erishcd  in  approaching  too  near 
VcHuvius,  In  the  great  eruption  which  buried  Pompeii  and  Ilerculaneum  (TO  a.d.). 

X  Tacitus  was  sitting  one  day  in  the  circus  watching  the  games,  when  a  stranger 
entered  into  a  learned  disquiuitiou  with  bim,  and,  after  a  while,  inquired,  "  Are  you 


68  feoMie. 

They  scanned  and  criticised  each  other's  manuscript,  and  became 
by  their  intimacy  so  linked  with  each  other  that  they  were  jointly 
remembered  in  people's  wills,  legacies  to  friends  being  the  fashion  of 
the  day.  Of  the  writings  of  Tacitus,  there  remain  a  j^art  of  the 
Annals  and  the  History  of  Borne,  a  treatise  on  Oermany,  and  a  Life 
of  Agrkola.  Of  Pliny,  we  have  only  the  Ejnstles  and  an  Eulogium 
upon  Trajan.  The  style  of  Tacitus  was  grave  and  stately,  sometimes 
sarcastic  or  ironical ;  that  of  Plmy  was  vivid,  graceful,  and  circum- 
stantial. 

Seneca  (7  b.  C.-65  A.  D.),  student,  poet,  orator,  and  stoic  philoso- 
pher, employed  his  restless  intellect  in  brilliant  ethical  essays,  trag- 
edies, and  instructive  letters  written  for  the  public  eye*  His  teach- 
ings were  remarkable  for  their  moral  purity,  and  the  Christian 
Fathers  called  him  "The  Divine  Pagan." 

Juvenal,  the  mocking,  eloquent,  cynical  satirist,  belongs  to  the 
close  of  the  century.  His  writmgs  are  unsurpassed  in  scathing 
denunciations  of  vice.f 

Libraries  and  Writing  Materials. — The  Roman  stationery 
differed  little  from  the  Grecian.  The  passion  for  collecting  books 
was  now  so  great  that  private  libraries  sometimes  contained  over 
sixty  thousand  volumes.:^  The  scrihrn  and  libmrii,  slaves  who  were 
attached  to  library  service,  were  an  important  part  of  a  Roman  gen- 
tleman's household.  Fifty  or  a  hundred  copies  of  a  book  were 
often  made  at  the  same  time,  one  scribe  reading  while  the  others 

of  Italy  or  from  the  provinces  ?  "  "  You  know  me  from  your  reading,"  replied  the 
historian.    "  Then,"  rejoined  the  other,  "  you  must  be  either  Tacitus  or  Pliny." 

*  Seneca  was  the  tutor  and  guardian  of  the  young  Nero,  and  in  later  days  carried 
his  friendship  so  far  as  to  write  a  defence  of  the  murder  of  Agrippina.  But  Nero 
was  poor  and  in  debt ;  Seneca  was  immensely  rich.  To  charge  him  with  conspiracy, 
sentence  him  to  death,  and  seize  his  vast  estates,  was  a  policy  characteristic  of  Nero. 
Seneca,  then  an  old  man,  met  his  fate  bravely  and  cheerfully.  His  young  wife  re- 
solved to  die  with  him,  and  opened  a  vein  in  her  arm  with  the  same  weapon  with 
which  he  had  punctured  his  own,  but  Nero  ordered  her  wound  to  be  ligatured.  As 
Seneca  suffered  greatly  in  dying,  his  slaves,  to  shorten  his  pain,  suffocated  him  in  a 
vapor  bath. 

t  Juvenal's  style  is  aptly  characterized  in  his  description  of  another  noted  satirist : 
"  But  when  Lucilius,  fired  with  virtuous  rage. 

Waves  his  keen  falchion  o'er  a  guilty  age, 

The  conscious  vOlain  shudders  at  his  sin. 

And  burning  blushes  speak  the  pangs  within  ; 

Cold  drops  of  sweat  from  every  member  roll. 

And  growing  terrors  harrow  up  his  soul." 
i  Seneca  ridiculed  the  fashionable  pretensions  of  illiterate  men  who  "adorn  their 
rooms  with  thousands  of  books,  the  titles  of  which  are  the  deUght  of  the  yawning 
owner." 


THE     CIVILIZATION. 


b\) 


wrote*  Papyrus,  as  it  was  less  expensive  than  parchment,  was  the 
favorite  writing  material.  The  thick  black  ink  used  in  writing  was 
prepared  from  soot  and  gum  ;  red  ink  was  employed  for  ruling  the 
colunms.      Tlie   Egyptian    reed-pen  {caUmm)   was   still  in  vogue. 


F" 


KOMAN    LIBRARY. 


•  A  book  was  written  upon  separate  strips  of  papynis.  When  the  work  was 
completed,  the  Htripa  were  glued  together;  the  last  page  was  fastened  to  a  hollow 
reed,  over  which  the  whole  was  wound;  the  bases  of  the  roll  were  carefully  cat, 
Binoothed,  and  dyed  ;  a  small  stick  was  passed  through  the  reed,  the  ends  of  which 
were  adorned  with  ivory,  golden,  or  painted  knobs  (umfAlici) ;  the  roll  was  wrapped  in 
parchment,  to  protect  it  from  the  ravages  of  worms,  and  the  title-label  was  affixed  :— 
tlie  book  was  ihen  ready  for  the  library  shelf  or  circiiliir  rase  (wrinitnn).  The  portrait 
of  the  author  usually  appeared  on  the  first  page,  and  the  title  of  the  book  was  written 
both  at  the  beginning  and  the  end.  Sheets  of  parchment  were  folded  and  sewed  in 
different  sizes,  like  modem  books.— An  author  read  the  first  manuscript  of  his  new 
work  before  as  large  an  audience  as  he  could  command,  and  judged  from  its  recep- 
tion whether  it  would  pay  to  publisli.  "If  you  want  to  recite,"  says  Juvenal, 
"  Maculonus  will  lend  you  his  house,  will  range  his  freedmen  on  the  furthest  benches, 
and  will  put  in  the  proper  places  his  strong-lunged  friends  (these  corresponded  to  our 
modern  dar/uftirii  or  hin-d  applauders) ;  but  he  will  not  give  what  it  costs  to  hire 
the  benche-,  set  up  the  gallfries,  and  fill  the  stage  witli  chairs."  These  readings  often 
became  a  bore,  and  Pliny  writes  :  "This  year  lias  brought  us  a  great  crop  of  poets. 
AadlenccH  come  slowly  and  reluctantly  ;  even  then  they  do  not  stop,  but  go  away 
before  the  end  ;  somo  indeed  by  etcalth,  others  with  perfect  opcnucBB." 


90  ROME. 

There  were  twenty-nine  public  libraries  at  Rome,  of  which  the 
Ulpian,  founded  by  Trajan,  was  the  most  important. 

Education. — As  early  as  450  b.  c.  Rome  had  elementary  schools, 
where  boys  and  girls  were  taught  reading,  writing,  arithmetic,  and 
music.  The  Roman  boy  mastered  his  alphabet  at  home,  as  most 
children  do  now,  by  playing  with  lettered  blocks.  At  school,  he 
chanted  the  letters,  syllables,  and  words  in  class,  after  the  teacher's 
dictation.  His  arithmetical  calculations  were  carried  on  by  the  aid  of 
his  fingers,  or  with  stone  counters  and  a  tablet  ruled  in  columns — the 
counters  expressing  certain  values  according  to  the  columns  on  which 
they  were  placed.  He  learned  to  write  first  on  wax  tablets, 
his  little  fingers  being  guided  by  the  firm  hand  of  the  master; 
afterward  he  used  pen  and  ink,  and  the  blank  side  of  second-hand 
slips  of  papyrus.*  Boys  of  wealthy  parents  were  accompanied  to 
school  by  a  slave,  who  carried  their  books,  writing  tablets,  and  count- 
ing boards,  and  also  by  a  Greek  pedagogue,  who,  in  addition  to 
other  duties,  practised  them  in  his  native  language.  Girls  were 
attended  to  and  from  school  by  female  slaves. 

Livius  Andronicus  o])ened  a  new  era  in  school  education.  Ennius, 
Nsevius,  and  Plautus  added  to  the  text-books  introduced  by  him, 
and  the  study  of  Greek  became  general.  In  later  times,  there  were 
excellent  higher  schools  where  the  master-pieces  of  Greek  and  Latin 
literature  were  carefully  analyzed.  National  jurisprudence  was  not 
neglected,  and  every  school-boy  was  expected  to  repeat  the  Twelve 
Tables  from  memory.  Rhetoric  and  declamation  were  given  great 
importance,  and  boys  twelve  years  old  delivered  set  harangues  on 
the  most  solemn  occasions.t    As  at  Athens,  the  boy  of  sixteen  years 

*  The  copies  set  for  him  were  usually  some  moral  maxim,  and,  doubtless,  many  a 
Roman  school-boy  labored  over  that  trite  proverb  quoted  from  Menander  by  Paul, 
and  which  still  graces  many  a  writing-book  :  "Evil  communications  corrupt  good 
manners." — ^Roman  schoolmasters  were  very  severe  in  the  use  of  the  ferula.  Plautus 
says  that  for  missing  a  single  letter  in  his  reading,  a  boy  was  "  striped  like  his  nurse's 
cloak"  with  the  black  and  blue  spots  left  by  the  rod.  Horace,  two  centuries  later, 
anathematized  his  teacher  as  Orbilius  jUagosus  (.Orbilius  of  the  birch)  ;  and  Martial, 
the  witty  epigrammatist  and  friend  of  Juvenal,  declares  that  in  his  time  "  the  morn- 
ing air  resounded  with  the  noise  of  floggings  and  the  cries  of  suflfering  urchins." 

t  Julius  Csesar  pronounced  in  his  twelfth  year  the  funeral  oration  of  his  aunt,  and 
Augustus  performed  a  similar  feat.  The  technical  rules  of  rhetoric  and  declamation 
were  so  minute,  that,  while  they  gave  no  play  for  genius,  they  took  away  the  risk  of 
failure.  Not  only  the  form,  the  turns  of  thought,  the  cadences,  everything  except  the 
actual  words,  were  modeled  to  a  pattern,  but  the  manner,  the  movements,  the  ar- 
rangement of  the  dress,  and  the  tones  of  the  voice,  were  subject  to  rigid  rules.  The 
hair  was  to  be  sedulously  coifed  ;  explicit  directions  governed  the  use  of  the  hand- 
kerchief ;  the  orator's  steps  in  advance  or  retreat,  to  right  or  to  left,  were  all  num- 
bered.   He  might  rest  only  60  many  minutes  on  each  foot,  and  place  one  only  so 


THE     CIVILIZATION. 


91 


ROMAN    TUGA. 


formally  entered  into  manlioorl,  tlie 
event  being  celebrated  with  certain 
ceremonies  at  home  and  in  the  Forum, 
and  by  the  assumption  of  a  new  style  of 
toga,  or  robe.  He  was  now  allowed  to 
attend  the  instruction  of  any  jjhiloso- 
pher  or  rhetorician  he  chose,  and  to 
visit  the  Forum  and  Tribunals,  being 
generally  escorted  by  some  man  of  note 
selected  by  his  father.  He  finished  his 
education  by  a  course  in  Athens. 

Moniiments  and  Art. — The  early 
Itdliaii  Temples  were  copied  from  the 
Etruscans;  the  later  ones  were  modifi- 
cations of  the  Grecian.  Round  temples 
(Etruscan)  were  commonly  dedicated  to 
Vesta  or  Diana;  sometimes  a  dome* 
and  portico  were  added,  as  in  the 
Pantheon. 

TJie  Basilica,  or  Hall  of  Justice, 
was  usually  rectangular,  and  divided  into  three  or  five  aisles  by 
rows  of  columns,  the  middle  aisle  Ijeing  widest.  At  the  extremity, 
was  a  semicircular,  arched  recess  (a//.se)  for  the  tribunal,  in  front  of 
which  was  an  altar — all  important  public  business  being  preceded 
by  sacrifice. 

Mofjidficent  Palaces  were  built  by  the  Coesars,  of  which  tlie 
Golden  House  of  Nero,  begun  on  the  Palatine  and  extending  by 
means  of  intermediate  structures  to  the  Esquiline,  is  a  familiar 
examjjle.t    At  Tibur  (the  modem  Tivoli),  Hadrian  had  a  variety  of 

many  inclies  before  the  other ;  the  elbow  mnst  not  rise  above  a  certain  angle  ;  the 
fliigen*  should  be  t^et  off  with  rings,  but  not  too  raany  or  too  large  ;  and,  in  raising 
the  hand  to  exhibit  them,  care  must  be  takou  not  to  disturb  the  head-dress.  Every 
cniotiou  had  its  prescribid  gesture,  and  the  heartiest  apjilauBe  of  tlie  audience  was 
for  the  perfection  of  the  pantomime.  To  run  Huioothly  in  all  these  physical  as  well 
ac  mental  grooves  of  fashion,  required  incessant  practice,  and  Augustus,  it  is  said, 
"  never  allowed  a  day  lo  pass  without  spending  an  hour  in  declamation,  to  keep  his 
lungs  In  regular  e.xercise  and  maintain  the  armory  of  dialectics  furbished  for  ready 
n.sc."— if?ri/'a/«V  liornans. 

•  Vaulted  domes  and  large  portlroes  are  characteristic  of  l?oman  architecture. 
Tlic  favorite  coluiiin  was  the  Corinlhian,  for  which  a  new  composite  capital  was  in- 
vented. The  foundation  stone  of  a  templ(!  was  laid  on  the  day  consecrated  lo  the  god 
to  whom  It  was  erected,  and  the  building  was  made  to  face  the  point  of  the  sun's 
riming  on  that  morning.  The  finest  specimens  of  Koman  temple  architecture  are  at 
Palmyra  and  Uaalbec  in  Syria. 

t  A  court  in  front,  surrounded  by  a  triple  colonnade  a  mlJe  long,  coutained  tlio 


93  ROME. 

structures,  imitating  and  named  after  the  most  celebrated  buildings 
of  different  ^jrovinces,  such  as  the  temple  of  Serapis  at  Canopus  in 
Egypt,  and  the  Lyceum  and  Academy  at  Athens.  Even  the  valley 
of  Tempe,  and  Hades  itself,  were  here  typified  in  a  labyrinth  of 
subterranean  chambers. 

In  Military  Roads,  Bridges,  Aqueducts,  and  Harbors,  the  Romans 
disjjlayed  great  genius.  Even  the  splendors  of  Nero's  golden  house 
dwindles  into  notliing  compared  with  the  harbor  of  Ostia,  the 
drainage  works  of  the  Fucinine  Lake,  and  the  two  large  aqueducts. 
Aqua  Claudia  and  Anio  Nova.* 

Military  Roads. — Unlike  the  Greeks,  who  generally  left  their 
roads  where  chance  or  custom  led,  the  Romans  sent  out  their  strong 
highways  in  straight  lines  from  the  capital,  overcoming  all  natural 
difficulties  as  they  went ;  filling  in  hollows  and  marshes,  or  spanning 
them  with  viaducts ;  tunneling  rocks  and  mountains ;  bridging 
streams  and  valleys;  sparing  neither  time,  labor,  nor  money  to  make 
them   perfect.t      Along  the   principal   ones  were   jDlaced  temples, 

emperor's  statue,  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  high.  In  other  conrts  were  gardens, 
vineyards,  meadows,  great  artificial  ponds  with  rows  of  houses  on  their  banks, 
and  woods  inhabited  by  tame  and  ferocious  animals.  The  walls  of  the  rooms  were 
covered  with  gold  and  jewels  ;  and  the  ivory  with  which  the  ceiling  of  the  dining- 
halls  was  inlaid  was  made  to  slide  back,  so  as  to  admit  a  rain  of  roses  or  fragrant 
waters  on  the  heads  of  the  carousers.  Under  Otho,  this  gigantic  building  was  con- 
tinued at  an  expense  of  over  $3,500,000,  but  only  to  be  pulled  down  for  the  greater 
part  by  Vespasian.  Tituaerected  his  Baths  on  the  Esquiline  foundation  of  the  Golden 
Palace,  and  the  Colosseum  covers  the  site  of  one  of  the  ponds. 

*  The  Lacus  Fucinus  in  the  country  of  the  Marsi  was  the  cause  of  dangerous  inun- 
dations. To  prevent  this,  and  to  gain  the  bed  of  the  lake  for  agricultural  pursuits,  a 
shaft  was  cut  through  the  solid  rock  from  the  lake  down  to  the  River  Liris,  whence 
the  water  was  discharged  into  the  Mediterranean.  The  work  occupied  thirty 
thousand  men  for  eleven  years.  The  Aqua  Claudia  was  fed  by  two  springs  in  the 
Sabine  mountain,  and  was  forty-five  Roman  miles  in  length  ;  the  Anio  Nova,  fed 
from  the  River  Anio,  was  sixty-two  miles  Jong.  These  aqueducts  extended  partly 
above  and  partly  under  ground,  until  about  six  miles  from  Rome,  where  they  joined 
and  were  carried  one  above  the  other  on  a  common  structure  of  arches — in  some 
places  one  hundred  and  nine  feet  high— into  the  city. 

t  In  building  a  road,  the  line  of  direction  was  first  laid  out,  and  the  breadth,  which 
was  usually  from  thirteen  to  fifteen  feet,  marked  by  trenches.  The  loose  earth  be- 
tween the  trenches  having  been  excavated  till  a  firm  base  was  reached,  the  space 
was  filled  up  to  the  proposed  height  of  the  road — which  was  sometimes  twenty  feet 
above  the  solid  ground.  First  was  placed  a  layer  of  small  stones  ;  next,  broken 
stones  cemented  with  lime  :  then,  a  mixture  of  lime,  clay,  and  beaten  fragments  of 
brick  and  pottery ;  and  finally,  a  mixture  of  pounded  gravel  and  lime,  or  a  pavement 
of  hard,  flat  stones,  cut  into  rectangular  slabs  or  irregular  polygons.  All  along  the 
roads  milestones  were  erected.  Near  the  Arch  of  Septimius  Severus  in  the  Roman 
Forum  may  still  be  seen  the  remains  of  the  "  Golden  Milestone  "  (erected  by  Augus- 
tus)—a  gilded  marble  pillar  on  which  were  recorded  the  names  of  the  roads  and 
their  length  from  the  metropolis. 


THE     CIVILIZATION. 


93 


triumphal  arches,  and  sepulcliral  monuments.  The  Appian  Way — 
called  also  Regina  Viaruni  or  Queen  of  Eoads — was  famous  for  the 
number,  beaut}-,  and  richness  of  its  tombs.  Its  foundations  were 
laid  313  b.  c.  by  the  censor  Appius  Claudius,  from  whom   it  was 

named. 


....L)    H\DK1ANS   T0\1L    {    L      j    -Lj 


The  Roman  Brid/jcs  and  Viodrtds  are  among  the  most  remarkable 
monuments  of  antiquity.  In  Greece,  where  the  streams  were  nar- 
row, little  attention  was  paid  to  bridges,  which  were  usually  of  wood, 
resting  at  each  extremity  upon  stone  piers.  The  Romans  applied 
the  arch,  of  which  the  Greeks  knew  little  or  nothing,  to  the  con- 
struction of  massive  stone  bridges*  crossing  the  wide  rivers  of  their 
various  provinces.  In  like  manner,  marshy  places  or  valleys  liable 
to  inundation  were  spanned  by  viaducts  resting  on  solid  arches. 
Of  tiiese  bridges,  which  may  still  l)e  seen  in  nearly  every  corner  of 
tlie  old  Roman  Empire,  one  of  the  most  interesting  is  the  Pons 

♦  In  onrly  time?,  tho  brl<lc;e<'  arrouR  tho  Tiber  worn  rosardod  an  pnrrod,  and  llieir 
care  \v:iM  confided  to  a  npccial  bodyof  pric^'tf,  called  jKinliflceji  (briduo-niakcrK).  Tho 
name  of  PrmH/fX  MnHmiix  rcinaiii<d  attjiclicd  lo  tlie  ni:,'li  I'riost,  and  wat  worn  by 
the  Roman  enipiTor.  It  is  now  jfiven  to  tin;  Pope.  Bridges  were  Bometimcs  made 
of  wood-work  and  mattuury  combined. 


94  ROME. 

^lius,  now  called  the  Bridge  of  St.  Angelo,  built  by  Hadrian  across 
the  Tiber  in  Rome. 

Aqueducts  were  constructed  on  the  most  stupendous  scale,  and 
at  one  time  no  less  than  twenty  stretched  their  long  lines  of  arches  * 
across  the  Camjjagna,  bringing  into  the  heart  of  the  city  as  many 
streams  of  water  from  scores  of  miles  away. 

In  their  stately  Harlors  the  Romans  showed  the  same  defiance 
of  natural  difficulties.  The  lack  of  bays  and  promontories  was 
sujiplied  by  dams  and  walls  built  far  out  into  the  sea;  and  even 
artificial  islands  were  constructed  to  protect  the  equally  artificial 
harbor.  Thus,  at  Ostia,  three  enormous  pillars,  made  of  chalk, 
mortar,  and  Pozzuolan  clay,  were  placed  upright  on  the  deck  of  a 
colossal  shijJ,  which  was  then  sunk;  the  action  of  the  salt  water 
hardening  the  clay,  rendered  it  indestructible,  and  formed  an  island 
foundation.  Other  islands  were  made  by  sinking  flat  vessels,  loaded 
with  huge  blocks  of  stone.  Less  imposing,  but  no  less  useful  were 
the  canals  and  ditches^  by  means  of  which  swamps  and  bogs  were 
transformed  into  arable  land  ;  and  the  subterranean  sewers  in  Rome, 
which,  built  twenty-five  hundred  years  ago,  still  serve  their  original 
jjurpose. 

TriumijJial  Arches,'\  erected  at  the  entrance  of  cities,  and  across 
streets,  bridges,  and  public  roads,  in  honor  of  victorious  generals  or 
emperors,  or  in  commemoration  of  some  gi'eat  event,  were  peculiar 
to  the  Romans  ;  as  were  also  the 

AmpJdtheatreSjl  of  which  the  Flavian,  better  known  as  the  Colos- 
seum, is  the  most  famous.     This  structure  was  built  mostly  of  blocks 

*  Their  remains,  striking  across  tlie  desolate  Campagna  in  varions  directions  and 
covered  with  ivy,  maiden-hair,  wild  flowers,  and  fig-trees,  form  one  of  the  mot^t  pic- 
turesque features  in  the  landscape  about  Rome.  "  Wherever  you  go,  these  arches 
are  visible  ;  and  toward  nightfall,  glowing  in  the  splendor  of  a  Roman  sunset,  and 
printing  their  leugtheniug  sun-looped  shadows  upon  the  illuminated  slopes,  they  look 
as  if  the  hand  of  Midas  had  touched  them,  and  changed  their  massive  blocks  of  cork- 
like  travertine  into  crusty  courses  of  molten  gold." — Story's  Boba  dl  Boma. 

t  Many  of  these  arches  stUl  remain.  The  principal  cues  in  Rome  are  those  of 
Titus  and  Constantino,  near  the  Colosseum,  and  that  of  Septimius  Severns  in  the 
Roman  Forum.  The  Arch  of  Titus,  built  of  white  marble,  commemorates  the  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem.  On  the  bas-reliefs  of  the  interior  are  represented  the  golden 
table,  the  seven -branched  candlestick,  and  other  precious  spoils  from  the  Jewish 
Temple,  carried  in  triumphal  procession  by  the  victors.  To  this  day,  no  Jew  will 
walk  under  this  Arch. 

X  The  Roman  theatre  differed  little  from  the  Grecian.  The  first  amphitheatre, 
made  in  the  time  of  Julius  Caesar,  consisted  of  two  wooden  theatres,  so  placed  upon 
pivots  that  they  could  be  wheeled  around,  spectators  and  all,  and  either  set  back  to 
back,  for  two  separate  dramatic  performances,  or  face  to  face,  making  a  closed  arena 
for  gladiatorial  shov/s. 


THE     CIVILIZATIOK, 


95 


of  travertine,  clamped  with  iron  and  faced  with  marble  ;  it  covered 
about  five  acres,  and  seated  eighty  thousand  persons.  At  its 
dedication  by  Titus  (a.  d.  80),  which  lasted  a  hundred  days,  five 
thousand  wild  animals  were  thrown  into  the  arena.  It  continued 
to  be  used  for  gladiatorial  and  wild-beast  fights  for  nearly  four 
hundred  years.  On  various  public  occasions  it  was  splendidly  fitted 
up  with  gold,  silver,  or  amber  furniture. 


THE    RUINS   or   THE   COLOSSEUM. 


Tlie  ThermcB  (public  baths,  WteraUy  warm  wnterii)  were  constructed 
on  the  grandest  scale  of  refinement  and  luxury.  The  Baths  of 
Caracal  la,  at  Rome,  contained  sixteen  hundred  rooms,  adorned  with 
precious  marljles.  Here  were  i)ainting  and  sculpture  galleries, 
liijiaries  and  museums,  porticoed  halls,  open  groves,  and  an  imperial 
palace. 

Tiie  arts  of  Paintinfj,  So/l/dure,  and  Pottery  were  borrowed  first 
from  the  Etruscans,  and  then  from  the  Greeks;*  in  moxaics^  the 


•  "  Roman  art,"  nays  ZerflS,  "  Is  a  misnomer ;  It  Ih  Etruscan,  Greek,  Assyrian,  and 
Egyptian  art,  (Iressefi  in  an  eclectic  Roman  Rarb  by  foreign  artists.  Tlic  Pantheon 
coniained  a  Orecl<  statue  of  Venus,  wliicii.  it  is  said,  lia(i  in  one  ear  tlie  half  of  tlie 
pearl  Irlt  by  Cleopatra.  To  ornament  a  Gnck  marble  stjituc!  representing  u  poddess 
witb  part  of  the  carriiiK  of  au  KKyptian  priucecs,  is  highly  charactcriBtlc  of  Roman 
lasic  in  matters  of  art." 


96  ROME. 

Romans  excelled*  In  later  times,  Rome  was  filled  with  the  mag- 
nificent spoils  taken  from  conquered  provinces,  especially  Greece. 
Greek  artists  flooded  the  capital,  bringing  their  native  ideality  to 
serve  the  ambitious  desires  of  the  more  practical  Romans,  whose 
dwellings  grew  more  and  more  luxurious,  until  exquisitely-frescoed 
walls,  mosaic  pavements,  rich  paintings,  and  marble  statues  became 
common  ornaments  in  hundreds  of  elegant  villas. 


3.    THE    MANNERS    AND    CUSTOMS. 

General  Character. — However  much  they  might  come  in  con- 
tact, the  Roman  and  the  Greek  character  never  assimilated.  We  have 
seen  the  Athenian  quick  at  intuition,  polished  in  manner,  art-loving, 
beauty-worshipping ;  fond  of  long  discussions  and  philosophical  dis- 
courses, and  listening  all  day  to  sublime  tragedies.  We  find  the  Roman 
grave,  steadfast,  practical,  stern,  unsympathizing ;  f  too  loyal  and 
sedate  to  indulge  in  much  discussion  ;  too  unmetaphysical  to  relish 
philosophy  ;  and  too  unideal  to  enjoy  tragedy.  The  Spartan  deified 
endurance  ;  the  Athenian  worshipped  beauty ;  the  Roman  was  em- 
bodied dignity.  The  Greeks  were  proud  and  exclusive,  but  not  un- 
courteous  to  other  nations  ;  the  Romans  had  but  one  word  (hostis)  for 
strangers  and  enemies.  Ambitious,  determined,  unfiinching,  they 
pushed  their  armies  in  every  direction  of  the  known  world,  and,  appro- 
priating every  valuable  achievement  of  the  peoples  they  conquered, 

*  The  mosaic  floors,  composed  of  bits  of  marble,  glass,  and  ralnable  stones,  were 
often  of  most  elaborate  designs.  One  discovered  in  the  so-called  House  of  the  Faun, 
at  Pompeii,  is  a  remarkable  battle  scene,  supposed  to  represent  Alexander  at  Issus. 
It  is  preserved,  somewhat  mutilated,  in  the  museum  at  Naples. 

+  What  we  call  sentiment  was  almost  unknown  to  the  Romans.  Tlie  Greeks 
had  a  word  to  express  affectionate  family  love ;  the  Romans  had  none.  Cicero, 
whom  his  countrymen  could  not  understand,  was  laughed  at  for  his  grief  at  the  death 
of  his  daughter.  The  exposure  of  infants  was  sanctioned  as  in  Greece— girls,  espe- 
cially, suffering  from  this  unnatural  custom— and  the  power  of  the  Roman  father 
oyer  the  life  of  his  children  was  paramount.  Tet,  Roman  fathers  took  much  pains 
with  their  boys,  sharing  in  their  games  and  pleasures,  directing  their  habits,  and 
taking  them  about  to^vn.  Horace  writes  gratefully  of  his  father,  who  remained  with 
him  at  Rome  during  his  school-days  and  was  his  constant  attendant.    (Sat.  I.  4.) 

It  is  not  strange,  considering  their  indifference  to  their  kindred,  that  the  Romans 
were  cruel  and  heartless  to  their  slaves.  In  Greece,  even  the  helot  was  granted  some 
little  consideration  as  a  human  being,  but  in  Rome  the  unhappy  captive— who  may 
have  been  a  prince  in  his  own  land— was  but  a  chattel.  The  lamprey  eels  in  a  certain 
nobleman's  fish-pond  were  fattened  on  the  flesh  of  his  bondmen  ;  and,  if  a  Roman 
died  suspiciously,  all  his  slaves— who  sometimes  were  numbered  by  thousands- 
were  put  to  the  torture.  The  women  are  accused  of  being  more  pitiless  than  the 
men,  and  the  faces  of  the  ladies'  maids  bore  perpetual  marks  of  the  blows,  scratches 
and  pin-stabs  of  their  petulant  mistresses. 


THE     MAXXERS     AND     CUSTOMS.  97 

made  all  the  borrowed  arts  tlieir  own,  lavishing  the  precious  spoils 
upon  their  beloved  Rome.  Their  pride  in  Roman  citizenship  amounted 
to  a  passion,  and  for  the  prosperity  of  their  cai>ital  they  were  ready  to 
renounce  the  dearest  personal  hope,  and  to  cast  aside  all  mercy  or 
justice  toward  every  other  nation. 

Religion. — The  Romans,  like  the  Greeks,  worshipped  the  powers 
of  Nature.  But  the  Grecian  gods  and  goddesses  were  living,  loving, 
hating,  quarrelsome  beings,  with  a  history  full  of  romantic  incident 
and  personal  adventure  ;  the  Roman  deities  were  solemn  abstractions 
mysteriously  governing  every  human  action,*  and  requiring  constant 
propitiation  with  vows,  prayers,  gifts,  and  sacrifices.  A  regular  system 
of  bargaining  existed  between  the  Roman  worshipper  and  his  gods. 
If  he  performed  all  the  stipulated  religious  duties,  the  gods  were 
bound  to  confer  a  reward  ;  if  he  failed  in  the  least,  the  divine  ven- 
geance was  sure.  At  the  same  time,  if  he  could  detect  a  flaw  in 
the  letter  of  the  law,  or  shield  himself  behind  some  doubtful  techni- 
cality, he  might  cheat  the  gods  with  impunity.f  'ihere  was  no  room 
for  faith,  or  hope,  or  love — only  the  binding  nature  of  legal  forms. 
Virtue,  in  our  modern  sense,  was  unknown,  and  piety  consisted,  as 
Cicero  declares,  in  "justice  toward  the  gods." 

In  religion,  as  in  everything  else,  the  Romans  were  always  ready 
to  borrow  from  other  nations.  Their  image-worship  came  from  the 
Etruscans  ;  their  only  sacred  volumes:]:  were  the  purchased  "  Sibylline 
Books  ";  they  drew  upon  the  gods  of  Greece,  until,  in  time,  tliey  had 
transferred  and  adopted  nearly  the  entire  Greek  Pantheon  ;  i§  Phoenicia 

*  The  fanner  had  to  satisfy  "  the  spirit  of  breaking  up  the  land  and  the  spirit  of 
plon;;hing  it  crosswise,  the  spirit  of  furrowing  and  tlie  spirit  of  harrowing,  the  spirit 
of  weeding  and  the  spirit  of  reaping,  the  spirit  of  carrying  the  grain  to  the  barn  and 
the  spirit  of  bringing  it  out  again."  The  little  child  was  attended  by  over  forty 
pods.  Vaticanus  taught  him  to  cry  ;  Fabulinus,  to  speak  ;  Edusa,  to  eat ;  Potina,  to 
drink  ;  .'Vbeona  conducted  him  out  of  the  house  ;  Interduca  guided  him  on  his  way  ; 
Domidtica  led  him  home,  and  Adcona  brought  him  in.  So,  also,  there  were  deities 
controlling  health,  society,  love,  anger,  and  all  the  passions  and  virtues  of  men. 

t  "If  a  man  offered  wine  to  Father  Jupiter,  and  did  not  mention  very  precisely 
that  it  was  only  the  cup-full  which  he  held  in  his  hand,  the  god  might  claim  the 
whole  year's  vintage.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the  god  nciuired  so  many  heads  in 
Bacriflce,  by  the  letter  of  the  bond  ho  would  bo  l)ouii<l  to  accept  garlic-heads  ;  if  he 
claimed  an  animal,  it  might  be  made  out  of  dough  or  wax."— lFi/AJ7i«V  Horn.  Ant'tq. 

%  "  Neither  Romans  nor  Greeks  had  any  sacred  books.  They  have  loft  poetry  of 
thf!  highest  order,  but  no  psalms  or  hymns,  litanies  or  prayers,  as  the  Egyptians  have 
-"  largi'ly  done."— T?^/!/)'//. 

S  Jupiter  fZeu")  and  Vesta  fHestia)  were  derived  by  Greeks  and  Romans  from 
I  heir  common  ancestor''.  Among  the  other  early  Italian  gods  were  Mars  (afterward 
identine<l  with  the  Orcek  Arcs),  Hercules fUcrakles).  Juno  (II<'ra),  Minerva  (ArhiMia), 
and  Neptune  (Poseidon).  The  union  of  the  Palatine  Romans  with  the  (/iiirlnal 
Sablncs  was  celebrated  by  the  mutual  worship  of  Qiiirinus,  and  a  gate  called  llie 
Janus  was  erected  in  the  valley,  afterward  the  site  of  the  Forum.    This  gate  waa 


9g 


flOME, 


and  Phrygia  lent  their  deities  to  swell  the 
list ;  and,  finally,  our  old  Egyptian  friends, 
Isis,  Osiris,  and  Serapis,  became  as  much 
at  home  upon  the  Tiber  as  they  had  been 
for  ages  on  the  Nile.    The  original  religious 
ideas  of  the  Romans  can  only  be  inferred 
from  a  few  peculiar  rites  which  character- 
ized their  worship.      The   Chaldeans  had 
astrologers ;   the   Persians  had  magi ;   the 
Greeks  had  sibyls  and  oracles  ;  the  Romans 
had 
Augurs.      Practical  and   unimaginative,  the 
Latins  would  never  have  been  content  to  learn 
the  divine  will  through  the  ambiguous  phrases 
of  a  human  prophet  ;  they  demanded  a  direct  yes 
or  no  from  the  gods  themselves.    Augurs  existed 
from  the  time  of  Romulus.     Without  their  as- 
sistance no   public  act   or    ceremony  could   be 
performed.     Lightning  and  the  flight  of  birds 
were  the  principal  signs  by  which  the  gods  were 
supposed   to    make  known   their   will  ;  -    some 
birds  of  omen  communicated  by  their  cry,  others  by  their  manner  of 
flight. 

The  Haruspices,  who  also  expounded  lightnings  and  natural  phe- 
nomena, made  a  specialty  of  divination  by  inspecting  the  internal 
organs  of  sacrificed  animals,  a  custom  we  have  seen  common  in  Greece. 


ROMAN  AUGUR. 


always  open  in  time  of  war,  and  closed  in  time  of  peace.  All  gates  and  doors  were 
sacred  to  the  old  Latin  god  Janus,  whose  key  fitted  every  lock.  He  wore  two  faces, 
one  before  and  one  behind,  and  was  the  god  of  all  beginnings  and  endings,  all  open- 
ings and  shuttings.— With  the  adoption  of  the  Greek  gods,  the  Greek  ideas  of  per- 
sonality and  mythology  were  introduced,  the  Romans  being  too  unimaginative  to 
originate  any  myths  for  themselves.  But,  out  of  the  hardness  of  their  own  character, 
they  disfigured  the  original  conception  of  every  borrowed  god,  and  made  him  more 
jealous,  threatening,  merciless,  revengeful,  and  inexorable  than  before.  "  Among  the 
thirty  thousand  deities  with  which  they  peopled  the  visible  and  invisible  worlds,  there 
was  not  one  divinity  of  kindness,  mercy,  or  comfort." 

*  In  taking  the  auspices,  the  angur  stood  in  the  center  of  a  con-  n 

secrated  square,  and  divided  the  sky  with  his  staff  into  quarters  (cut); 
he  then  offered  his  prayers  and,  turning  to  the  south,  scanned  the  -^ 
heavens  for  a  reply.  Coming  from  the  left,  the  signs  were  favorable ; 
from  the  right,  unfavorable.  If  the  first  signs  were  not  desirable, 
the  augurs  had  only  to  wait  until  the  right  ones  came.  They  thus 
compelled  the  gods  to  sanction  their  decisions,  from  which  there  was  afterward  no 
appeal.  In  the  absence  of  an  augur,  the  "  Sacred  Chickens,"  which  were  carried 
about  in  coops  during  campaigns,  were  consulted.  If  they  ate  their  food  greedily, 
especially  if  they  scattered  it,  the  omen  was  favorable  ;  if  they  refused  to  eat,  or 
moped  in  the  coop,  evil  was  anticipated  ! 


THE     MASTNERS     AXD     CUSTOMS.  99 

Their  art  was  never  much  esteemed  by  the  more  enlightened  classes, 
and  Cato,  who  detested  their  hypocrisy,  said  that  "one  haruspex  could 
not  even  look  at  another  in  the  streets  without  laughing." 

The  fnmily  worship  of  Vesta,  Goddess  of  the  Hearth,  was  more 
exclusive  in  Rome  than  in  Greece,  where  slaves  joined  in  the  home 
devotions.  A  Roman  father,  himself  the  Priest  at  this  ceremony, 
woukl  have  been  shocked  at  allowing  any  but  a  kinsman  to  be  present, 
for  it  included  the  worship  of  the  Lares  and  Penates,  the  spirits  of 
his  ancestors  and  the  guardians  of  his  house.  So,  also,  in  the  public 
service  at  the  Temple  of  Vesta,  the  national  hearth-stone,  the  patricians 
felt  it  a  sacrilege  for  any  but  themselves  to  join.  The  worship  of 
Vesta,  Saturnus  (the  god  of  seed-sowing),  and  Opo  (the  harvest-god- 
dess), was  under  the  direction  of  the 

College  of  Poatifices,  of  which,  in  regal  times,  the  king  was  high- 
priest.  Attached  to  this  priestly  college — the  highest  in  Rome — were 
the  Flamens^  [flare,  to  blow  the  fire),  who  were  Priests  of  Jupiter, 
Mars,  and  Quirinus  ;  and  the  Vestal  Virgins,  who  watched  the  eternal 
fire  in  the  Temple  of  Vesta.f 

The  SaMi,  or  "  leaping  priests,"  received  their  name  from  the  war- 
like dance  which,  dressed  in  full  armor,  they  performed  every  March 
before  all  the  temples.  They  had  the  care  of  the  Sacred  Shields,  which 
they  carried  about  in  their  annual  processions,  beating  them  to  the 

*  The  Flamen  DialU  (Priest  of  Jupiter)  was  forbidden  to  take  an  oath,  mount  a 
horse,  or  iflaiice  at  an  army.  Hi.s  hand  could  touch  nothing  unclean,  and  he  never 
approached  a  corpse  or  a  tomb.  As  he  must  not  look  at  a  fetter,  the  ring  on  his 
finger  was  a  broken  one,  and,  as  he  could  not  wear  a  knot,  his  thick  woolen  toga, 
woven  by  his  wife,  was  fastened  with  buckles.  lie  was  not  allowed  lo  approach  a 
trai!<-d  vine,  or  to  touch  ivy.  If  his  head-dress  (a  sort  of  circular  ])ill<)w.  on 
the  top  of  which  an  olive-branch  was  fastened  by  a  white  woolen  thread)  chanced  to 
fall  off,  he  was  obliged  to  resign  his  oflBce.  In  his  belt  he  carried  the  sacriflcial  knife, 
and  ill  his  hand  he  held  a  rod  to  keep  off'  the  people  on  his  way  to  sacriflce.  As  he 
miirht  not  look  on  any  secular  employment,  he  was  preceded  by  a  lictor,  who  com- 
pelled every  one  to  lay  down  his  work  till  the  Flumen  had  passed.  His  duties  were 
continuous,  and  he  could  not  remain  for  a  night  away  from  his  house  on  the  Palatine. 
His  wife  was  subject  to  an  equally  rigid  code.  She  wore  long  woolen  robes,  and 
shoes  made  of  the  leather  of  sacrificed  animals,  fler  hair  was  tied  with  a  jiiirple 
woolen  ribbon,  over  which  was  a  kerchief,  fastened  with  the  bough  of  a  lucky  tree. 
She  also  carried  a  sacrificial  knife. 

t  The  Veitlal  always  dres.-^cd  in  white,  with  a  broad  band,  like  a  diadem,  round 
her  forehead.  During  sacrifice  or  in  processions,  she  was  covered  with  a  while  veil. 
She  was  chosen  for  the  service  when  from  six  to  ten  years  old,  and  her  vows  held  for 
thirty  years,  after  which  time,  if  she  chose,  she  was  released  and  might  marry. 
.\riy  offence  offered  her  was  jiunishcd  with  death.  In  public,  every  one,  iven  the 
'  "u-ul,  made  way  for  the  lictor  preceding  the  maid(;n,  and  she  had  the  seat  of  honor 
.it  all  public  ganies  and  priestly  hanipiets.  If.  however,  she  accidetitJilly  suffered  the 
sacred  flre  to  go  out.  she  was  liable  to  cnrpore:il  punishment  by  the  pontifex  niaxi- 
mns;  if  she  brok"'  her  vows,  die  was  carried  on  a  bier  to  the  Campus  Scelerntus, 
l)ealcn  with  rods,  and  buried  alive.  The  number  of  vestal  virgins  never  exceeded 
six  at  any  one  time. 


100  ROME. 

measure  of  an  old-time  song  in  praise  of  Janus,  Jupiter,  Juno,  Minerva, 
and  Mars.  One  of  the  shields  was  believed  to  have  fallen  from 
Heaven.  To  mislead  a  possible  pillager  of  so  precious  a  treasure, 
eleven  more  were  made  exactly  like  it,  and  twelve  priests  were  ap- 
pointed to  watch  them  all. 

The  Fetiales  had  charge  of  the  sacred  rites  accompanying  declara- 
tions of  war,  or  treaties  of  peace.  War  was  declared  by  throwing  a 
bloody  spear  across  the  enemy's  frontier.  A  treaty  was  concluded  by 
the  killing  of  a  pig  with  a  sacred  pebble. 

Altars  were  erected  to  the  Emperors,  where  vows  and  prayers 
were  daily  offered.*  In  the  times  of  Roman  degeneracy,  the  city  was 
flooded  with  quack  Chaldean  astrologers,  Syrian  seers,  and  Jewish 
fortune-tellers.  The  women,  especially,  were  ruled  by  these  corrupt 
impostors,  whom  they  consulted  in  secret  and  by  night,  and  on  whom 
they  squandered  immense  sums.  Under  these  debasing  influences, 
profligacies  and  enormities  of  every  kind  grew  and  multiplied.  The 
old  Roman  law  which  commanded  that  the  parricide  should  be 
"  sewn  up  in  a  sack  with  a  viper,  an  ape,  a  dog,  and  a  cock,  and  then 
cast  into  the  sea,"  was  not  likely  to  be  rigidly  enforced  when  a  parri- 
cide sat  on  the  throne,  and  poisonings  were  common  in  the  palace. 
That  the  pure  principles  of  Christianity,  which  were  introduced  at 
this  time,  should  meet  with  contempt,  and  its  disciples  with  bitter 
persecution,  was  inevitable. 

Games  and  Festivals. — The  Roman  public  games  were  a 
degraded  imitation  of  the  Grecian,  and,  like  them,  connected  with 
religion.  When  a  divine  favor  was  desired,  a  vow  of  certain  games 
was  made,  and,  as  the  gods  regarded  promises  with  suspicion,  the 
expenses  were  at  once  raised.  Each  of  the  great  gods  had  his  own 
festival -month  and  day. 

The  Suturwdia,  which  occurred  in  December,  and  which,  in  later 
times,  lasted  seven  days,  was  the  most  remarkable.  It  was  a  time  of 
general  mirth  and  feasting ;  schools  were  closed ;  the  senate  adjourned  ; 
presents  were  made  ;  wars  were  forgotten ;  criminals  had  certain 
privileges  ;  and  the  slaves,  whose  lives  were  ordinarily  at  the  mercy 
of  their  masters,  were  permitted  to  jest  with  them,  and  were  even 
waited  upon  by  them  at  table  ; — all  this  in  memory  of  the  free  and 
golden  rule  of  ancient  Saturn. 

The  gymnastic  and  musical  exercises  of  the  Greeks  never  found 
much  favor  in  Rome  ;  tragedies  were  tolerated  only  for  the  splendor 
of  the  costumes  and  the  scenic  wonders  ;  and  even  comedies  failed  to 

*  "  Not  even  the  Ej^yptiatis,  crouchinoj  in  grateful  admiration  before  a  crocodile,  so 
outraged  humanity  as  did  those  polite  Romans,  rendering  divine  honors  to  an  em- 
peror lilie  Aurelius  Commodiis,  who  fought  seven  hundred  and  thirty-five  times  as  a 
common  gladiator  in  the  arena  before  liis  enervated  people." — Zerffi. 


THE     M  A  X  X  E  R  S     A  X  D     CUSTOMS. 


101 


satisfy  a  Roman  audience.  Farces  and  pantomimes  won  great  ap- 
plause ;  horse  and  chariot  races  were  exciting  pleasures  from  the  time 
of  the  kings ;  but,  of  all  delights,  nothing  could  stir  Rome  like  a 
gladiatorial  or  wild-beast  fight.  At  first  connected  with  the  Saturnalia, 
the  sports  of  the  arena  soon  became  too  popular  to  be  restricted,  and 
mourning  sons  in  high  life  paid  honors  to  a  deceased  father  by 
furnishing  a  public  fight,  in  which  from  twenty-five  to  seventy-five 
gladiators  were  hired  to  take  part,  the  contest  often  lasting  for  davs. 


Oladiatorial  Shown  were  advertised  by  private  circulars  or  i)ublic 
announcements.  On  the  day  of  the  i)erfornumce,  the  gladiators  marched 
in  solemn  procession  to  the  arena,  wliero  they  were  matched  in  i)airs,* 

•  The  ^rlartiators  fouglit  in  pairs  or  In  matched  nuinhers.  A  favorite  dnel  was 
between  a  man  without  armx,  but  who  carried  a  net  in  whicli  to  enfnnre  hin  opponent 
and  a  three-pronged  fork  with  which  to  npenr  hitn  when  caught,  and  niiotlicr  man  in 
full  armor,  whf)-e  safety  lay  in  evadin;;  hl-^  enemy  wliilo  he  i)iirHucd  and  killed  him. 
"It  l.s  impoHHibli;  to  di-^^cribc  the  aspect  of  an  ampliithcntn!  when  f;ludiiitors 
fought.  The  audience  became  fniitic  with  cxcilenu'iit  ;  thi-y  roHO  from  tlii-irwatH; 
they  yelled  ;  they  phoutcd  their  applause  n-i  a  K'>'i"*"y  blow  w:h  di'iill  whirli  nent  the 
life-blood  Bpoutini;  forth.  ' /A<c /«'/'/<<'  —  ' In;  Ikm  it' — 'he  \\a*  it,'  burnt  from  ton 
thouHand  tbrualo,  oud  wau  rc-ccbocd,  not  uuly  by  u  brutalized  populace,  but  by 


102  ROME. 

aud  their  weapons  formally  examined.  "  An  awning  gorgeous  with 
purple  and  gold  excluded  the  rays  of  the  midday  sun ;  sweet  strains 
of  music  floated  in  the  air,  drowning  the  cries  of  deatli ;  the  odor  of 
Syrian  perfumes  overpowered  the  scent  of  blood ;  the  eye  was  feasted 
by  the  most  brilliant  scenic  decorations,  and  amused  by  elaborate 
machinery."  At  the  sound  of  a  bugle  and  the  shout  of  command,  the 
battle  opened.  When  a  gladiator  was  severely  wounded,  he  dropped 
his  weapons,  and  held  up  his  forefinger  as  a  plea  for  his  life.  This 
was  sometimes  in  the  gift  of  the  people  ;  often  the  privilege  of  the 
vestal  virgins  ;  in  imperial  times,  the  prerogative  of  the  emperor.  A 
turned-down  thumb  or  the  waving  of  a  handkerchief  extended  mercy  ; 
a  clenched  and  upright  fist  forbade  all  hope.  Cowards  had  nothing  to 
expect,  and  were  whipped  or  branded  with  hot  irons  till  they  resumed 
the  fight.  The  killed  and  mortally  wounded  were  dragged  out  of  the 
arena  with  a  hook. 

Tlie  Wild-Beast  Fvjlds  were  still  more  revolting,  especially  when 
untrained  captives  or  criminals  were  forced  to  the  encounter.  Many 
Christian  martyrs,  some  of  whom  were  delicate  women,  perished  in 
the  Colosseum.  We  read  of  twenty  maddened  elephants  turned  in 
upon  six  hundred  war  captives,  and,  in  Trajan's  games,  which  lasted 
over  one  hundred  and  twenty  days,  ten  thousand  gladiators  fought,  and 
over  that  number  of  wild  beasts  were  slain.  Sometimes,  the  animals, 
made  furious  by  hunger  or  fire,  were  let  loose  at  one  another.  Great 
numbers  of  the  most  ferocious  beasts  were  imported  from  distant 
countries  for  these  combats.  Strange  animals  were  sought  after,  and 
camelopards,  white  elephants,  the  rhinoceros,  and  the  hippopotamus, 
goaded  to  fury,  delighted  the  assembled  multitudes.  Noble  game  be- 
came scarce,  and  at  last  it  was  forbidden  by  law  to  kill  a  Getulian  lion 
out  of  the  arena,  even  in  self-defence. 

Nauil  FighU,  in  flooded  arenas,  were  also  popular.  The  Colosseum 
was  sometimes  used  for  this  purpose,  as  many  as  thirty  vessels  taking 
l)art.  At  an  entertainment  given  by  Augustus  in  the  flooded  arena  of 
the  Flaniinian  circus,  thirty-six  crocodiles  were  pursued  and  killed. 

Marriage  was  of  two  kinds.  In  one,  the  bride  passed  from  the 
control  of   her  fatlujr   into   that  of  her  husband  ;    in   the    other,  the 

imperial  lii)s,  by  purple-clad  senators  aiitl  knights,  by  noble  matrons  and  cousecrated 
iwaUU.^^—Sheppufcfs  Fall  of  Rome.  So  frenzied  with  the  eight  of  blood  did  the 
spectators  become  that  they  would  rush  into  the  arena  and  slay  on  every  side  ;  and 
so  sweet  was  the  applause  of  the  mob  that  captives,  slaves,  and  criminals  were  envied 
the  monoi)oly  of  the  gladiatorial  contest,  and  laws  were  required  to  restrict  knights 
and  senators  from  entering  the  lists.  Some  of  the  emperors  fonght  publicly  in  the 
arena,  and  even  women  thus  debased  themselves.  Finally,  such  was  the  mania,  that 
no  wealthy  or  patrician  family  was  without  its  gladintors,  and  no  festival  was  complete 
without  a  contest.  Even  at  banquets,  blood  was  the  only  stimulant  that  roused  the 
jaded  appetite  of  a  Roman, 


THE     MANNERS     AND     CUSTOMS, 


103 


DRESSING  A  ROMAN  BBIDK. 


parental  power  was  retained.  The  former 
kind  of  marriage  could  be  contracted  in 
any  one  of  three  diflerent  ways.  Of  these, 
the  religious  form  was  confined  to  the 
patricians ;  the  presence  of  the  pontifex 
maximus,  the  priest  of  Jupiter,  and  ten 
citizens  was  necessary  as  witnesses ;  a 
sacred  cake  {far)  was  broken  and  solemnly 
tasted  by  the  nuptial  pair,  whence  this 
ceremony  was  termed  confarreatio.  A 
second  manner  was  by  purchase  {coemptio), 
in  which  the  father  formally  sold  his 
daughter  to  the  groom,  she  signifying  her 
consent  before  witnesses.  The  third  form, 
by  prescription  (usus),  consisted  simply  in 
the  parties  having  lived  toorether  for  a  year 
without  being  separated  for  three  days  at 
any  time. 

The  marriage  ceremony  proper  differed 
little  in  the  various  forms.     The  betrothal 

consisted  of  the  exchange  of  the  words  spondeme  {do  you  promise  V) 
and  upmideo  (I  promise),  followed  by  the  gift  of  a  ring  from  the 
groom.  On  the  wedding  morning,  the  guests  assembled  at  the  house 
of  the  bride's  father,  where  the  auspices — which  had  been  taken 
before  sunrise  by  an  augur  or  a  haruspex— were  declared,  and  the 
sf)l<-mii  marriage  contract  was  spoken.  Tiie  bride's  attendant  then 
laid  her  hands  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  newly-married  pair,  and  led 
them  to  the  family  altar,  around  which  they  walked  hand-in-hand, 
while  a  cow,  a  pig,  and  a  sheep  were  offered  in  sacrifice — the  gall 
having  been  first  extracted  and  thrown  away,  to  signify  the  removal 
of  all  l>itteriiess  from  the  occasion.  Tin;  guests  having  made  their 
congratulations,  the  feast  began.  At  nightfall,  the  bride  was  torn 
with  a  show  of  force  from  her  mother's  arms  (in  memory  of  the  seizure 
of  the  Sabine  women,  (p.  16) ;  two  boys,  whose  parents  were  both 
alive,  supported  her  by  the  arms;  torches  were  lighted,  and  a  gay 
procession,  as  in  Greece,  accompanied  the  party  to  the  house  of  the 
gffHjm.  Here  the  bride,  having  repeated  to  her  spouse  the  formula, 
"  Ubi  tn  CaiiiH,  ibi  ego  Cuia"  (When;  thou  art  Cains,  I  am  Caia), 
anointed  the  door-]K)stH  and  wound  them  with  wool,  and  was  lifted 
over  the  threshold.  Having  been  formally  welcomed  into  the  tttrium 
by  her  husband,  tliey  both  touched  fire  and  water,  and  she  was  given 
the  keys  to  the  house.  The  next  day,  at  the  second  marriage  feast, 
the  wife  brought  her  offerings  to  the  guds  of  lier  husband's  family,  of 
which  she  was  now  a  member,  ami  a  Homan  matron. 


104  EOME. 

Burial." — When  a  Roman  died  it  was  the  duty  of  his  nearest  rela- 
tive to  receive  his  last  breath  with  a  kiss,  and  then  to  close  his  eyes 
and  mouth  (compare  ^neid,  iv.  684).  His  name  was  now  called 
several  times  by  all  present,  and  there  being  no  response  the  last  fare- 
well (vale)  was  said.  The  necessary  utensils  and  slaves  having  been 
hired  at  the  temple  where  the  death-registry  was  kept,  the  body  v/as 
laid  on  the  ground,  washed  in  hot  water,  anointed  with  rich  perfumes, 
clad  in  its  best  garments,  placed  on  an  ivory  bedstead,  and  covered 
with  blankets  of  purple,  embroidered  with  gold.f  The  couch  was  deco- 
rated with  flowers  and  foliage,  but  upon  the  body  itself  were  placed 
only  the  crowns  of  honor  fairly  earned  during  its  lifetime  ;  these 
accompanied  it  into  the  tomb.  By  the  side  of  the  funereal  bed,  whicli 
stood  in  the  atrmm  facing  the  door,  as  in  Greece,  was  placed  a  pan  of 
incense.  The  body  was  thus  exhibited  for  seven  days,  branches  of 
cypress  and  iir  fastened  in  front  of  the  house  announcing  a  mourning 
household  to  all  the  passers-by.  On  the  eighth  morning,  while  the 
streets  were  alive  with  bustle,  the  funeral  took  place.  Behind  the 
hired  female  mourners,  who  sang  wailing  dirges,  walked  a  baud  of 
actors,  who  recited  scraps  of  tragedy  applicable  to  the  deceased,  or 
acted  comic  scenes  in  which  were  sometimes  mimicked  his  personal 
peculiarities.:]:  In  front  of  the  bier  marched  those  who  personated  the 
prominent  ancestors  of  the  dead  person.  They  wore  waxen  masks 
(p.  113),  in  which  and  in  their  dress  were  reproduced  the  exact  features 
and  historic  garb  of  these  long-defunct  personages. §  The  bier,  car- 
ried by  the  nearest  relatives,  or  by  slaves  freed  by  the  will  of  the 
deceased,  and  surrounded  by  the  family  friends  dressed  in  black  (or,  in 
imperial  times,  in  white),  was  thus  escorted  to  the  Forum.  Here  the 
mask-wearers  seated  themselves  about  it,  and  one  of  the  relatives 
mounted  the  rostrum  to  eulogize  the  deceased  and  his  ancestors.  After 
the  eulogy,  the  procession  reformed,  and  the  body  was  taken  to  the 

*  The  Romans,  like  the  Greeks,  attached  great  importance  to  the  interment  of 
their  dead,  as  they  believed  that  the  spirit  of  an  unhuried  body  was  forced  to  wander 
for  a  hundred  years.  Hence  it  was  deemed  a  religious  duty  to  scatter  earth  over  any 
corpse  found  uncovered  by  the  wayside,  a  handful  of  dust  being  sufficient  to  appease 
the  infernal  gods.  If  the  body  of  a  friend  could  not  be  found,  as  in  shipwreck,  an 
empty  tomb  was  erected,  over  which  the  usual  rites  were  performed. 

+  We  are  supposing  the  case  of  a  rich  man.  The  body  of  a  poor  person  was,  after 
the  usual  ablutions,  carried  at  night  to  the  common  burial-ground  outside  the  Esqui- 
line  gate,  and  interred  without  ceremony. 

t  At  Vespasian's  obsequies  an  actor  ludicrously  satirized  his  parsimony.  "  How 
much  will  this  ceremony  cost?"  he  asked,  in  the  assumed  voice  of  the  deceased 
emperor.  A  large  sum  having  been  named  in  reply,  the  actor  extended  his  hand  and 
greedily  cried  out,  "  Give  me  the  money  and  throw  my  body  into  the  Tiber." 

§  Frequently,  the  masks  belonginir  to  the  collateral  branches  of  the  family  were 
borrowed,  that  a  brilliant  show  mif^ht  be  made.  Parvenus,  who  belong  to  all  time, 
were  wont  to  parade  images  of  fictitious  ancestors. 


THE     MANXEKS     AND     CUSTOMS.  105 

spot  where  it  was  to  be  buried  or  burned,  botli  forms  being  used 
as  in  Greece.  If  it  were  burned,  the  nearest  relative,  with  averted 
face,  lighted  the  pile.  After  the  burning,  the  hot  ashes  were  drenched 
with  wiue,  aud  the  friends  collected  tlie  bones  in  the  folds  of  their 
robes,  amid  acclamations  to  the  manes  of  the  departed.  The  remains, 
sprinkled  with  wine  and  milk,  were  then— with  sometimes  a  small 
glass  vial  filled  with  tears— placed  in  the  funeral  urn ;  a  last  farewell 
was  sp  ;ke:i,  the  lustrations  were  performed,  and  the  mourners 
separated.  When  the  body  was  not  burned,  it  was  buried  with  all  its 
ornamen  s  in  a  coffin,  usually  of  stone*  The  friends,  on  returning 
home  from  the  funeral,  were  sprinkled  vriih  water,  and  then  they 
ste-ped  over  fire,  as  a  purification.  The  house  also  was  ceremoniously 
purified.  An  offerin<r  and  banquet  took  place  on  the  ninth  day  after 
burial,  in  accordance  with  Greek  custom. 

Dress. — The  toga,  worn  by  a  Roman  gentleman,  was  a  piece  of 
white  woolen  cloth  about  five  yards  long  and  three  and  a  half  wide, 
folded  lengthways,  so  that  one  edge  fell  below  the  other.  It  was  thrown 
over  the  left  shoulder,  brought  around  tlie  back  and  under  the  right 
arm,  then,  leaving  a  loose  fold  in  front,  thrown  again  over  the  left 
shoulder,  leaving  the  end  to  fall  behind.  Much  pains  was  taken  to 
drape  it  gracefully,  according  to  the  exact  style  required  by  fas'.iion. 
A  tunic,  with  or  without  sleeves,  and  in  cold  weather  a  vest,  or  one 
or  more  extra  tunics,  were  worn  under  the  toga.  Boys  under  seventeen 
years  of  age  wore  a  toga  with  a  purple  hem  ;  the  toga  of  a  senator  had 
a  broad  purple  stripe,  and  that  of  a  knight  had  two  narrow  stripes. 
The  use  of  the  toga  was  forbidden  to  slaves,  strangers,  and,  in  im- 
perial times,  to  banished  Romans. 

The  pfnnula,  a  heavy,  sleeveless  cloak,  with  sometimes  a  hood 
attached,  and  the  lacerna,  a  thinner,  bright-colored  one  arranged  in 
folds,  were  worn  out  of  doors  over  the  toga.  The  paliidamentum,  a 
rich,  red  cloak  draped  in  pic:uresque  folds,  was  permitted  only  to  the 
military  general -in-chief,  who,  in  imperial  times,  was  the  emperor 
himself.  The  nagum  was  a  short  military  cloak.  The  synthcm,  a  gay- 
colored  Go&y  robe,  was  worn  over  the  tunic  at  banquets,  and  by  the 
nobility  during  the  Saturnalia.  Poor  p('0[)le  had  only  the  tunic,  and 
in  cold  weather  a  tight-fitting  wool  or  leather  cloak.  When  not  on  a 
journey  the  Roman,  like  the  Gr.ek,  left  liis  head  uncovered,  or  pro- 
tected it  with  his  toga  Rank  decided  the  style  of  shoe  :  a  consul  used 
a  red  one,  a  senator  a  black  one  with  a  silver  crescent,  orlinary  folk 
a  plain  black,  slaves  and  ]  oorest  people  wooden  clogs.  In  the  house, 
sandals  dniy  were  worn,  and  at  dinner  even  these  were  laid  aside. 

•  That  from  A^pc  in  Lycia  wa"*  paifl  to  connntno  the  ontire  body, except  the  teeth, 
tn  forty  days:  hence  it  \\&*  called  sarcophagus  (lleHh-ealiug),  a  name  which  came  IQ 
eland  for  any  coflln. 


106  ROME. 

A  Roman  matron  dressed  in  a  linen  under-tunic,  a  vest,  and  the 

stola,  a  long,  short-sleeved  garment,  girdled  at  the  waist  and  flounced 
or  hemmed  at  the  bottom.  Over  this,  when  she  went  out,  she  threw 
a  palla,  cut  and  draped  like  her  husband's  toga,  or  like  the  Greek 
himation.  Girls  and  foreign  women,  who  were  not  permitted  the  stola, 
wore  over  the  tunic  a  palla,  arranged  like  the  old  Doric  chiton. 
Women — who,  like  the  men,  went  hatless — protected  their  heads  with 
the  palla,  and  wore  veils,  nets,  and  various  light  head-coverings. 
This  led  to  elaborate  fashions  in  hair-dressiug.  A  caustic  soap  im- 
ported from  Gaid  was  used  for  hair  dyeing,  and  wigs  were  not  uncom- 
mon. Bright  colors,  such  as  blue,  scarlet,  violet,  and  especially 
yellow — the  favorite  tint  for  bridal  veils — enlivened  the  feminine 
wardrobe.  Finger-rings  were  worn  in  profusion  by  both  sexes,  and 
a  Roman  lady  of  fashion  luxuriated  in  bracelets,  necklaces,  and  various 
ornaments  set  with  diamonds,  pearls,  emeralds,  and  other  jewels, 
whose  purchase  frequently  cost  her  husband  his  fortune. 


SCENES    IN    REAL    LIFE. 

Scene  I. — A  Day  in  Rome. — Let  us  imagine  ourselves  on  some 
bright,  clear  morning,  about  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  looking  down 
from  the  summit  of  the  Capitoline  hill  tipon  the  "  Mistress  of  the 
World."  As  we  face  the  rising  sun,  we  see  clustered  about  us  a  group 
of  hills  crowned  with  a  vast  assemblage  of  temples,  colonnades, 
palaces,  and  sacred  groves.  Densely  packed  in  the  valleys  between 
are  towering  tenements,*  shops  with  extending  booths,  and  here  and 
there  a  templed  forum,  amphitheatre,  or  circus.  In  the  valley  at  our 
feet,  between  the  Via  Sacra  and  the  Via  Nova— the  only  paved  roads 
in  the  whole  city  fit  for  the  transit  of  heavy  carriages — is  the  Forum 
Romanum,  so  near  us  that  we  can  watch  the  storks  that  stalk  along 
the  roof  of  the  Temple  of  Concord  f  This  Forum  is  the  great  civil  and 
legislative  heart  of  the  city.  Here  are  the  Regia  or  palace  of  the  chief 
pontiff,  with  its  two  adjoining  basilicas ;  the  Temple  of  Vesta,  on 
whose  altar  burns  the  sacred  flame  ;  the  Senate  House,  fronted  by  the 
Rostra,  from  which  Roman  orators  address  assembled  multitudes  ; 
various  temples,  including  the  famous  one  of  Castor  and  Pollux  ;  and 

*  Ancient  authors  frequently  mention  the  extreme  height  of  Roman  houses,  which 
Augustus  finally  limited  to  seventy  feet.  Cicero  says  of  Rome  that  "  it  is  suspended 
in  the  air";  and  Arlstides,  comparing  the  snccessive  stories  to  the  strata  of  the 
earth's  crust,  affirms  tliat  if  they  were  laid  out  on  one  level  they  "  would  cover  Italy 
from  sea  to  sea."  To  economize  lateral  space,  the  exterior  walls  were  forbidden  to 
exceed  a  foot  and  a  half  in  thickness. 

t  Storks  were  encouraged  to  build  in  the  roof  of  this  temple,  as  pecoliar  social 
Instincts  were  attributed  to  them.    (See  Steele'' s  Zoology y  p.  147.) 


THE     MANNERS     AND     CUSTOMS. 


107 


r^u. 


fr-lf^..-       ,>^^as^:    42- — 


iij-.^ 


^. 


many  beautiful  marble  arches,  col- 
umns, and  statues.  At  our  right  is 
the  crowded  district  of  the  Vela- 
l)rum,  and  beyond  it,  between  the 
Palatine  and  Aventine  hills,  is  the 
''ircus  Maximus,  from  which  the 
A]ipirai  Way  sweeps  to  the  south- 
iM.st,  thi-oufrh  the  Porta  Capena  and 
uiidL'r  the  great  Aqua  Crabra,  a  sol- 
idly-paved street,  many-days  jour- 
ney in  extent,  and  lined  for  miles 
beyond  the  city  walls  with  mag- 
nificent marble  tombs  shaded  by 
cypress  trees.  Amou';'  the  temples  on 
the  Palatine  stands  the  illustrious 
one  sacred  to  Apollo,  along  whose 
porticoes  hang  the  trophies  of  all  na- 
tions, and  to  whicli  is  at- 

tn,'1,,Ml   ,,   i-:,,u,u,<    lil.rnrv  jf 


ROMS   IN  THB  TIMB  OF  AUGUSTUS  QXSAR. 


108  ROME. 

of  Greek  and  Roman  books  ;  near  it  is  the  Roma  Quadrata,  a  square 
mass  of  masonry  believed  to  be  mysteriously  connected  witli  the  for- 
tunes of  the  city,  and  beneath  which  certain  precious  amulets  are  de- 
posited. Interspersed  among  these  public  buildings  on  the  Palatine  are 
many  isolated  mansions  surrounded  by  beautiful  gardens  fragrant  with 
the  odors  of  roses  and  violets,  in  which  the  Romans  especially  delight. 
There  is  no  arrangement  of  streets  upon  the  hills  ;  that  is  a  system 
confined  to  the  crowded  Suburra,  which  adjoins  the  Roman  F<jrum 
at  our  front  and  lies  at  the  foot  of  the  Quirinal,  Viminal,  and  Es- 
quiline  hills.  This  district,  which  was  once  a  swampy  jungle  and 
afterward  a  fashionable  place  for  residences  (Julius  Csesar  was  born 
in  the  Suburra),  is  now  tlie  crowded  abode  of  artificers  of  all  kinds, 
and  is  the  most  profligate  as  well  as  most  densely  po2)ulated  part  of 
Rome. 

Turning  about  and  facing  the  west,  we  see,  toward  the  north,  the 
Campus  Martins,  devoted  from  the  earliest  period  to  military  exercises 
and  the  sports  of  running,  leaping,  and  bathing.  On  this  side  of  the 
open  meadows  stand  some  of  the  principal  temples,  the  great  Flaminian 
Circus,  and  the  theatres  of  Pompeius  and  Marcellus  with  tlieir  groves, 
porticoes,  and  halls.  Precisely  in  the  center  of  the  plain  rises  the 
Pantheon  of  Agrippa,  and,  further  on,  we  see  the  Amphitheatre  of 
Taurus,"''  and  the  Mausoleum  of  Augustus.  At  our  front,  beyond  the 
curving,  scnithward-flowing  Tiber,  is  a  succession  of  terraces,  upon 
whose  heights  are  many  handsome  residences.  This  quarter,  the 
Janiculum,  is  noted  for  its  salubrity,  and  here  are  the  Gardens  of 
CiEsar,  and  the  Naumacliia  (a  basin  for  exhibiting  naval  engagements) 
of  Augustus,  fed  by  a  special  aqueduct,  and  surrounded  by  walks  and 
groves.  Glancing  down  the  river  we  see  the  great  wharf  called  the 
P'mporium,  with  its  immense  store-houses,  in  which  grain,  spices, 
candles,  paper,  and  other  commodities  are  stored  ;  and,  just  beyond  it, 
the  Marmorata,  a  special  dock  for  landing  building-stone  and  foreign 
marbles.  It  is  j'et  early  morning,  and  the  streets  of  Rome  are  mainly 
filled  with  clients  and  their  slaves  hurrying  to  the  atria  (p.  114)  of  their 
wealthy  patrons  to  receive  the  customary  morning  dole.f      Here  and 

*  The  whole  of  this  northern  district  comprehends  the  chief  part  of  moclcrn 
Rome,  and  i<  now  thronged  with  houses. 

t  In  early  times  the  clients  were  invited  to  feast  with  their  patron  in  the  atrinm 
of  liis  mansion,  but  in  later  days  it  became  customary,  instead,  for  stewards  to  dis- 
tribute small  sums  of  money  or  an  allowance  of  food,  which  the  slaves  of  the  clients 
carried  away  in  baskets  or  in  small  portable  ovens,  which  kept  the  cooked  meats  hot. 
"  Wedg"d  in  thick  ranks  before  the  donor's  gates, 
A  phalanx  firm  of  chairs  nnd  litters  waits. 
Once,  plain  and  open  was  the  feast. 
And  every  client  was  a  bidden  guest ; 
Now,  at  the  gate  a  paltry  largess  lies, 
And  eager  hands  and  tongues  dispute  the  prize." — Jumnat. 


PLAN    OF    ANCIENT    ROME. 

SHOWING   THE    DIVISION    INTO 
AND   THE    POSITION   OF  THE   PRINCIPAL   BUILDINGS. 


I.  Porta  Capena. 

I.  P..ri«  CapHMH 

5.  Valley  orKK'-ritt. 

3.  Totiib  of  Scii.io. 
n.  C^aUMONTIUM. 

4.  Teiii|.l«..fDivu»(;l»iidlu8 

6.  Ar<-h  i.f  CoMBUiiline. 

in.  Ihib  et  Sebafib. 

6.  C<ili»i>utn. 

1.  Hath.  ofTilun. 

8.  BbIIki  uf  Trajnn. 

IV.  Via  Sacra. 

9.  K.rinii  of  Vp.pa.lan. 
10.  HiKilirn  of  Coii.iantln.>. 

V.  Esquilinacdm  Vim- 

NALL 

II.Ti.ln|.l«  of  Jonn. 

VI.  Alta  Semita. 


12.  R« 


of  Dlorl..ria 


13.  T»iii|il"  of  Flo 

U.  T«ni|>li>  ofQiiirlliu.. 

U.  Baiha  of  (  oiiHtantlng. 

VII.  Via  Lata. 

1«.  Arrh  of  Anrnlliu. 

11.  Arch  bf  CUodliu. 


18.  Amphitheatre  of  Tiiunw. 

19.  Column  of  Anloninu8. 
yO.  Cftiiip  of  Agrippa, 

SI.  Temple    of  UU  aud  Se- 

rnpis. 

Vni.  Forum  Romanttm. 

S'J.  Ciipilolin,-  Hill. 

V3.  Temple  of  Jupiter  ToiiaUB 

1.'4.  An. 

•26.  Golden  Mlleatono. 

•J6.  Roman  Forum. 

27.  Temple  of  Ve.lii. 

S8.  Vitt.4acrB. 

29.  Luperoal. 

30.  Tnri.eiiin  Rock. 

31.  Arcli  of  Severn.. 

32.  Curia  (Senate  Ilouae.) 

33.  Forum  of  AuKuitut. 

34.  Bn.llira  Ulpla. 
36.  Temple  of  Jann». 

IX.  Cmoufl  Flaminius. 

.'<6.  Theatre  of  Mnrrellu.<. 
.n.  Port,    of     Oclariu.     and 

Phllipi.a. 
38.  Cirru.  FlamUilu.. 
89.  Teniplo  of  Apollo. 


40.  Temple  of  Bellona. 

41.  Septn  Julia. 

42.  Dlrlbit<irinm. 

43.  Baths  of  AK'ippn. 

44.  Port,  of  l'oni|)ey. 

45.  Theatre  of  Pontpey. 

46.  Pantheon. 

47.  Hnth»  of  Nero. 

48.  Rnee  Course. 

49.  MnUHolenni  of  Anguetn 

X.  Palatium. 

BO.  Palnr..  of  Nero. 
51.  Pnliifo  of  Au^MiKlu.. 

XI.  CiRCUB  Maximcb. 

62.  Velnhruin. 

63.  Forum  Ollioriuni. 
M.  Forum  Iloarlum. 
66.  Clreu.  Muilmu.. 

Xn.  Piscina  PxmLioA. 

.',6.  Kalli.  of  Antoninua. 

Xm.  Aventinus. 


67.  Itnln 
np. 


I  Sur 


XrV.  Tranb  Tiberih. 

69.  TempU  uf  ^iaculapln*. 


no  ROME. 

there  a  teacher  hastens  to  his  school,  and  in  the  Suburra  the  workers 
in  metal  and  in  leather,  the  clothiers  and  perfume  sellers,  the  book- 
dealers,  the  general  retailers,  and  the  jobbers  of  all  sorts,  are  already 
beginning  their  daily  routine.  We  miss  the  carts  laden  with  mer- 
chandise which  so  obstruct  our  modern  city  streets  ;  they  are  forbidden 
by  law  to  appear  within  the  walls  during  ten  hours  between  sunrise 
and  sunset.  But,  as  the  city  wakes  to  life,  long  trains  of  builders' 
wagons,  weighted  with  huge  blocks  of  stone  or  logs  of  timber,  bar 
the  road,  and  mules,  with  country  produce  piled  in  baskets  suspended 
on  either  side,  urge  their  way  along  the  constantly  increasing  crowd. 
Here  is  a  mule  \vith  a  dead  boar  thrown  across  its  back,  the  proud  hun- 
ter stalking  in  front,  with  a  strong  force  of  retainers  to  carry  his  spears 
and  nets.  There  comes  a  load  drawn  by  oxen,  upon  whose  horns  a 
wisp  of  hay  is  tied  ;  it  is  a  sign  that  they  are  vicious,  and  passers-by 
must  be  on  guard.  Now  a  passage  is  cleared  for  some  dignified  patri- 
cian, who,  wrapped  in  his  toga,  reclining  in  his  luxurious  litter,  and 
borne  on  the  broad  shoulders  of  sis  stalwart  slaves,  makes  his  way  to 
the  Forum  attended  by  a  train  of  clients  and  retainers.  In  his  rear, 
stepping  from  stone  to  stone*  across  the  slippery  street  wet  by  the 
recent  rains,  we  spy  some  popular  personage  on  foot,  whose  advance 
is  constantly  retarded  by  his  demonstrative  acquaintances,  who  throng 
about  him,  seize  his  hand,  and  cover  his  lips  with  kisses,  f 

The  open  cook-shops  swarm  with  slaves  who  hover  over  steaming 
kettles,  preparing  breakfast  for  their  wonted  customers  ;  and  the  tables 
of  the  vintners,  reaching  far  out  upon  the  wayside,  are  covered  with 
bottles,  protected  from  passing  pilferers  by  chains.  The  restaurants 
are  hung  with  festoons  of  greens  and  flowers  ;  the  image  of  a  goat, J 
carved  on  a  wooden  tablet,  betokens  a  milk  dejjot ;  five  hams,  ranged 

*  In  Pompeii,  the  sidewalks  are  elevated  a  foot  or  more  above  the  street  level, 
and  protected  by  curbstones.  Remains  of  the  stucco  or  the  coarse  brickwork  mosaic 
which  covered  them  are  still  seen.  In  many  places  the  streets  are  so  narrow  that 
they  may  be  crossed  at  one  stride  ;  where  they  are  wider,  a  raised  stepping-stone, 
and  sometimes  two  or  three,  have  been  placed  in  the  center  of  the  crossing.  Though 
these  stones  were  in  the  middle  of  the  carriage-way,  the  wheels  of  the  biga,  or  two- 
horsed  chariot,  could  roll  in  the  spaces  between,  while  the  loosely  harnessed  horses 
might  step  over  them  or  pass  by  the  side.  Among  the  suggestive  objects  in  the 
exhumed  city  are  the  hollows  worn  in  these  stepping-stones  by  feet  which  were  for- 
ever stilled  more  than  eighteen  hundred  years  ago. 

+  "  At  every  meeting  in  the  street  a  person  was  exposed  to  a  number  of  kisses, 
not  only  from  near  acquaintance,  but  from  every  one  who  desired  to  show  his  attach- 
ment, among  whom  there  were  often  mouths  not  so  clean  as  they  might  be.  Tiberius, 
who  wished  himself  not  to  be  humbled  by  this  custom,  issued  an  edict  against  it, 
but  it  does  not  appear  to  have  done  much  arood.  In  winter  only  it  was  considered 
improper  to  annoy  another  with  one's  cold  lips." — Becker's  Gallus. 

X  A  goat  driven  about  from  door  to  door,  to  be  milked  for  customers,  is  a  common 
Bight  in  Rome  to-day,  where  children  come  out  with  gill  or  half-pint  cups  to  get  their 
moFDing  ration. 


THE     MAXi^EKS     AND     CUSTOMS.  Ill 

in  a  row,  proclaim  a  provision  store  ;  and  a  mill,  driven  by  a  mule, 
advertises  a  miller's  and  baker's  shop,  both  in  one.  About  the  street 
corners  are  groups  of  loungers  collected  for  their  morning  gossip, 
while  gymnasts  and  gladiators,  clowns,  conjurors,  snake  charmers,  an  J 
a  crowd  of  strolling  swine — wlio  roam  at  will  about  the  imperial  city — 
help  to  obstruct  the  narrow,  tortuous  highways.  The  professional 
street-beggars  are  out  in  force  ;  squatting  upon  little  squares  of  mat- 
ting, they  piteously  implore  a  dole,  or,  feigning  epilepsy,  fall  at  thj 
feet  of  some  rich  passer-by.  Strangers,  too,  are  here,  men  of  foreign 
costume  and  bearing,  come  from  afar  to  see  the  wonders  of  the  world- 
conquering  city,  and,  as  they  gaze  distractedly  about,  dazed  by  the  din 
of  rumljling  wagons,  shouting  drivers,  shrill-voiced  hucksters,  braying 
asses,  and  surging  multitudes,  suddenly  there  comes  a  lull.  The 
slaves,  whose  task  it  is  to  watch  the  sun-dials  and  report  the  expiration 
of  each  hour,  have  annoimced  that  the  sun  has  passed  the  midday  lino 
upon  the  pavement.  Soon  all  tumult  ceases,  and  for  one  hour  the  city 
is  wrapped  m  silence. 

The  luxurious  siesta  over,  Rome  awakes  to  now  e-ijoyment.  Now 
com  i  the  pleasures  and  excitement  of  the  circus  and  the  theatre,  or 
the  sports  upon  the  Campus  Martius,  whither  the  young  fashionables 
repair  in  crowds,  to  swim,  run,  ride,  or  throw  the  javelin,  watched 
by  an  admiring  assembly  of  seniors  and  women  who,  clustered  in 
porticxjt'S,  are  sheltered  from  the  burning  sun.  Then  follows  the  luxury 
of  the  wann  and  vapor  baths,  with  perfuming  and  anointing,  and  every 
refiuement  of  physical  refreshment  as  a  ])reparation  for  the  coming 
cccnti  or  dinner  (p  110).  But  wherever  one  may  seek  enjoyment  for 
the  early  evening,  it  is  well  to  bo  housed  before  night  comes  on,  for 
tiie  streets  of  Rome  swarm  with  nocturnal  highwaymen,  marauders, 
and  high -blooded  rowdies,  who  set  the  police  at  open  defiance,  and 
keep  whole  districts  in  terror.  There  are  other  dangers,  too,  for  night 
is  the  time  chosen  by  the  careful  hous(jwife  to  dump  the  slo])s  and 
debris  from  her  upper  windows  into  the  open  drain  of  the  street  below. 
Fi'-es.  also,  are  fre(]uent,  and,  though  the  night-watch  is  provided  with 
liatchets  and  buckets  to  resist  its  progress,  a  conflagration  once  started 
in  the  crowded  Suburra  or  Velabrum  spreads  with  fearful  rapidity, 
and  will  soon  render  hundreds  of  families  homeless.*  Meanwhile, 
the  carts,  shut  out  by  law  during  the  daytime,  crowd  and  jostle  one 
another  in  the  eagerness  of  their  noisy  drivers  t)  finish  their  duties 

•  The  tencnienlH  of  tlin  lower  cliispes  in  Rome  were  fo  rrowded  that  often  whole 
familic!H  were  hinlillcd  tOL"'lher  in  one  Hin.'ill  room.  Tho  diirtTcnt  stories  were  reached 
by  Htairwayw  j)luced  oil  the  ontHide  of  tlic  biiildiiiu'f.— There  w(;re  no  ni(-in>iiirar.ce 
companicH,  but  the  piifTererH  were  rnuiiifirenlly  r(;comi»eii8ed  by  KcneroiiH  citizen!<. 
Iheir  Ioh- being  not  only  made  good  in  money,  but  followed  by  inesents  of  hordes. 
pietnrcH,  Hiatiii--',  and  elioice  mowaic-*,  from  their  zeah)iiM  frienflf.  Martial  ini'imialee 
tbat  on  thin  account  parties  were  somctimcH  tempted  to  Arc  their  own  premises. 


112  EOME. 

and  be  at  liberty  for  the  night,  while,  here  and  there,  groups  of  smok- 
ing fl;mibeaux  mark  the  well-armeil  trains  of  the  patricians  on  their 
return  from  evening  banquets.  As  the  night  advances,  the  sights  and 
sounds  gradually  fade  and  die  away,  till  in  the  first  bours  of  the  new 
day  the  glimmering  lantern  of  the  last  wandering  pedestrian  has  dis- 
appeared, and  the  great  city  lies  under  the  stars  asleep. 

Scene  II. — ^1  Roman  Home* — We  will  not  visit  one  of  the  tall 
lodging-houses  which  crowd  the  Suburra,  though  in  passing  we  may 
glance  at  the  plain,  bare,  outside  Avail,  with  its  few  small  windows  f 
placed  in  the  upper  stories  and  graced  with  pots  of  flowers ;  and  at 
the  outside  stairs  by  which  the  inmates  mount  to  those  dizzy  heights, 
and  under  which  the  midnight  robber  and  assassin  often  lurk.  Some- 
times we  see  a  gabled  front  or  end  with  a  sloping  roof,  or  feel  the  shade 
of  projecting  balconies  which  stretch  far  over  the  narrow  street.  On 
many  a  flat  roof,  paved  with  stucco,  stone,  or  metal,  and  covered  with 
earth,  grow  fragrant  shrubs  and  flowers.  Coming  into  more  aristo- 
cratic neigliborhoods,  we  yet  see  little  domestic  architecture  to  attract 
us.  It  is  only  when  a  spacious  vestibule,  adorned  with  statues  and 
mosaic  pillars,  lies  open  to  the  street  that  we 
have  am'  intimation  of  the  luxury  witliin  a 
Roman  dwelling.  If,  entering  such  a  vestibule, 
we  rap  with  the  bronze  knocker,  the  unfast- 
ened folding-doors  are  pushed  aside  by  the  wait- 
ing janitor  (who  first  peeps  at  us  through  the 
large  open  spaces  in  the  door-posts),f  and  we  find 
ourselves  in  the  little  ostium  or  entrance  hall 
leading  to  the  atrium.  Here  we  are  greeted, 
not  only  by  the  "  saUe  "  (welcome)  on  the  mosaic 
pavement,  but  by  the  same  cheerful  word  chat- 
A  ROMAN  LAMP  tered  by  a  trained   parrot  hanging    above   the 

door.     We  linger  to  notice  the  curiously  carved 
door  posts,  inlaid  with  tortoise-shell,  and  the  door  itself,  which,  instead 


*  No  traces  of  ancient  private  dwellings  exist  in  Rome,  except  m  the  ruins  of  the 
Palace  of  the  Csesars  on  the  Palatine,  where  the  so-called  house  of  Livia,  wife  of 
Augustus,  remains  tolerably  perfect.  It  is  similar  in  dimensions  and  arrangement  to 
the  best  Pompeian  dwellings,  though  far  superior  in  paintings  and  decorations.  The 
"  House  of  Pansa  "  in  Pompeii,  the  plan  of  which  is  described  in  the  test,  is  consid- 
ered a  good  representative  example  of  a  wealthy  Roman's  home. 

t  Panes  of  glass  have  been  found  in  Pompeii,  though  it  was  more  usual  to  close 
the  window-holes  with  movable  wooden  shutters,  clay  tablets,  talc,  or  nets. 

t  In  ancient  times,  the  janitor,  accompanied  by  a  dog,  was  confined  to  his  proper 
station  by  a  chain.  As  it  was  not  customary  to  keep  the  door  locked,  such  a  protec- 
tion was  necessary.  In  the  "Honse  of  the  Tragic  Poet,"  exhumed  at  Pompeii,  a 
fierce  black  and  white  dog  is  depicted  in  the  mosaic  pavement,  and  underneath  it  is 
the  inscription,  •'  Cave  Cauem  "  (Beware  of  the  Dog). 


THE     MANNERS     AKD     CUSTOMS.  113 

of  hinges,  is  provided  with  wedge-shaped  pins,  fitting  into  sockets  or 
rings,  and  then  we  pass  into  the  atrium,  the  room  about  which  chister 
the  most  sacred  memories  of  Roman  domestic  life.  Here  in  ancient 
times  all  the  simple  meals  were  taken  beside  the  hearth  on  which  they 
were  prepared,  and  by  which  the  sacrifices  were  daily  offered  up  to  the 
beloved  Lares  and  Penates.*  Here  was  welcomed  the  master's  chosen 
bride,  and  here,  a  happy  matron.f  she  afterward  sat  enthroned  in  the 
midst  of  her  industrious  maids,  spinning  and  weaving  the  houseliold 
garments.  From  their  niches  upon  these  walls,  by  the  side  of  glistening 
weapons  captured  in  many  a  bloody  contest,  the  Avaxen  masks  of  honored 
ancestore  have  looked  down  for  generations,  watching  the  bodies  of 
the  family  descendants  as,  one  by  one,  they  have  lain  in  state  upon  the 
funeral  bier. — But  increase  of  luxury  has  banished  the  stewing-pans, 
the  busy  looms,  and  the  hospitable  table  to  other  apartments  in  the 
growing  house.  The  Lares  and  Penates ^ave  left  their  primitive  little 
closets  by  the  atrium  cooking-hearth  for  a  larger  and  separate  sacra- 
rium,  and  spacious  kitchens  now  send  fortli  savory  odors  from  turbot, 
ptieasant,  wild-boar,  and  sausages,  to  be  served  up  in  summer  or  winter 
tricliniuras  by  a  host  of  well  trained  slaves.:]:  The  household  dead  are 
still  laid  here,  but  the  waxen  masks  of  olden  times  are  gradually  giv- 
ing place  to  brazen  shield-shaped  plates  on  which  are  dimly -imaged 


•  At  every  meal,  the  first  act  was  to  cast  a  portion  of  each  article  of  food  into  the 
fire  that  burned  upon  the  hearth,  in  honor  of  the  household  gods. 

t  The  Roman  matron,  unlike  the  Greek,  enjoyed  great  freedom  of  action,  both 
within  and  without  her  house,  and  was  always  treated  with  attention  and  respect. 

X  The  Romans  were  fond  of  amazing  their  guests  with  costly  dainties,  such  as 
nightingales,  peacocks,  and  the  tongues  and  brains  of  flamingoes.  Caligula  dissolved 
pearls  in  powerful  acids,  in  imitation  of  Cleopatra,  and  sjient  $400,000  on  a  single 
repast.  A  dramatic  friend  of  Cicero  paid  over  $4,000  for  a  dish  of  singing  birds ;  and 
one  famous  epicure,  after  having  exhausted  the  sum  of  four  million  dollars  in  his 
pood  living,  poisoned  himself  because  ho  had  not  quite  half  a  million  left  1  Fish  waa 
a  favorite  food,  and  the  mansions  of  the  rich  were  fitted  up  with  fish-ponds  (piscince) 
for  the  culture  of  rare  varieties,  which  were  sometimes  caught  and  cooked  on  silver 
gridirons  before  invited  guests,  who  enjoyed  the  changing  colors  of  the  slowly  dying 
fish,  and  the  tempting  odor  of  the  coming  treat.  Turbots,  mackerels,  eels  and  oys- 
ters were  popular  delicacies,  and  a  fine  mullet  brought  sometimes  as  much  as  ^240. 
In  game,  the  fatted  hare  arid  the  wild  boar,  served  whole,  were  ranked  first.  Pork, 
as  in  Greece,  was  the  favorite  meat,  beef  and  mutton  being  regarded  with  little  favor. 
Great  disi)lay  was  made  in  serving,  and  Juvenal  ridicules  the  airs  of  the  profeBsional 
carver  of  hia  lime,  who,  he  says — 

"  Skips  like  a  harlequin  from  place  to  place. 
And  waves  his  knife  with  )>antomiinic  trnicc — 
For  diflcrent  gestures  by  our  curious  men 
Arc  used  for  different  dishes,  har<'  and  hen." 

In  vegetables  the  Romans  had  lettuce,  cabbage,  turnips,  and  asparagus.  Mnsh- 
rooniB  were  highly  prizi'd.  The  poorer  classes  lived  ou  cheap  fish,  boiled  chick-peas, 
beans,  lentils,  barley  bread,  and  puis  or  grucL 


114 


EOME. 


features,  or  to  bronze  and  marble  busts*  The  little  aperture  in  the 
center  of  the  ceiling,  which  served  the  double  purpose  of  escape  for 
smoke  and  the  admission  of  sunlight,  has  been  enlarged,  and  is  sup- 
ported by  costly  marble  pillars,  alternating  with  statues  ;  directly  un- 
derneath it,  the  open  cistern  reflects  each  passing  cloud  and  mirrors 
the  now-unused  altar,  which,  for  tradition's  sake,  is  still  left  standing 
by  its  side.  When  the  rain,  wind,  or  heat  becomes  severe,  a  tapestry 
curtain,  hung  horizontally,  is  drawn  over  the  aperture,  and  some- 
times a  pretty  fountain,  surrounded  by  flowering  plants,  embellishes 
the  pool  of  water.  Tapestries,  sliding  by  rings  on  bars,  conceal  or 
open  to  view  the  apartments  which  adjoin  the  atrium.  As  we  stand 
at  the  entrance-do  )r  of   this   spacious   room,f  with  the  curtains   all 


THB  HOUSE   OF   PANSA.      (VIEW    FROM   THE    ENTRANCE-DOOR   OF   THE    ATRIUM.) 

drawn  aside,  we  look  down  a  long  anl  beautiful  vista;  past  the 
central  fountain  and  altar  ;  through  the  onen  tablinum,  paved  with 
marbles  and  devoted  to  the  mastei's  use  ;  into  the  peristyle,  a  hand- 
some open  court  surrounded  by  pillared  arcades,  paved  with  mosaics 
and  beautified,  like  the  atrium,  with  central  fountain  and  flowers ; 
and  still  on,  through  the  large  banqueting  hall,  or  family  state-room 
(CBCus),  beyond  the  transverse  corridor,  and  into  the  garden  which 
stretches  across  the  rear  of  the  mansion.  If  we  stop  to  glance  into  the 
library  which  adjoins  the  tablinum,  we  shall  find  its  walls  lined  with 


*  Pliny  speaks  of  the  craving  for  portrait-statues,  which  induced  obscure  persons, 
suddenly  grown  rich,  to  buy  a  fictitious  ancestry,  there  being  ready  antiquarians 
then,  as  now,  who  made  it  a  business  to  furnish  satisfactory  pedigrees. 

t  The  atrium  in  the  House  of  Pansa  was  nearly  fifty  feet  long  and  over  thirty 
wide.  As  this  was  only  a  moderate-sized  house  in  a  provincial  town,  it  is  reasonable 
to  suppose  that  the  city  houses  of  the  rich  were  much  more  spacious. 


THE     MANNERS     AND     CUSTOMS.  115 

cupboards  stored  with  parchment  rolls  and  adorned  with  busts  and 
pictures  of  illustrious  men,  crowned  by  the  presiding  statues  of 
Minerva  and  the  Muses.  In  general  furniture,  we  notice  beautiful 
tripod-stauds  holding  graceful  vases,  chairs  after  Greek  patterns,  and 
lecti*  on  which  to  recline  when  reading  or  writing.  Occasionally 
there  is  a  small  wall-mirror,  made  of  polished  metal,  and  the  walls 
themselves  are  brilliantly  painted  in  panels,  bearing  graceful  floating 
figures  and  scenes  of  mythological  design.  The  floors  arc  paved 
with  bricks,  marbles,  or  mosaics,  and  the  rooms  are  warmed  or  cooled 
by  pipes  through  which  flows  hot  or  cold  water.  In  extreme  weather 
there  are  portable  stoves.  There  is  a  profusion  of  quaintly-shaped 
bronze  and  even  golden  lamps,  whose  simple  oil-fed  wicks  give  forth 
at  night  a  feeble  giimmer.f  As  we  pass  through  the  fauces  into  the 
peristyle  a  serpent  slowly  uncoils  itself  from  its  nest  in  one  of  the 
alae,  which  has  been  made  the  household  sanctuary,:];  and  glides  toward 
the  triclinium  in  search  of  a  crumb  from  the  midday  meal. 

The  large  triclinium,  at  the  right  of  the  peristyle,  is  furnished  with 
elegantly  inlaid  sofas,  which  form  three  sides  of  a  square  about 
a  costly  cedar  or  citrus-wood  table.  §      At  banquets  the   sofas   are 

*  A  ledus  was  neither  bed  nor  sofa,  but  a  simple  frame  with  a  low  ledge  at  one 
end,  and  strung  with  girth  on  which  a  mattress  and  coverings  were  laid.  Lecti  were 
made  of  bras.s,  or  of  cedar  inlaid  with  ivory,  tortoiBo-shell  and  precious  metals,  and 
were  provided  with  ivory,  gold,  or  silver  feet.  Writing-desks  with  stools  were  un- 
known ;  the  Roman  reclined  on  the  lectus  when  he  wrote,  resting  hia  tablet  upon 
his  knee. 

t  The  Romans  were  in  the  habit  of  making  New- Year's  gifts,  such  as  dried  figs, 
dates,  and  honey  comb  as  emblems  of  sweetness,  or  a  little  piece  of  money  as  a  hojje 
for  good  luck.  But  the  favorite  gift  was  a  lamp,  and  great  genius  was  displayed  in 
the  variety  of  elegant  designs  which  were  invented  in  search  of  the  novel  and  unique. 

X  Serpents  were  the  emblems  of  the  Lares,  and  were  not  only  figured  upon  the 
altars,  but,  as  a  presence  of  good  omen,  a  particular  kind  was  kept  as  pets  in  the 
houses,  where  they  nestled  about  the  altars  and  came  out  like  dogs  or  cats  to  be 
noticed  by  visitors,  and  to  beg  for  something  to  eat.  These  sacred  reptiles,  which 
were  of  considerable  size  but  harmless  except  to  rats  and  mice,  bore  such  a  charmed 
life  that  their  numbers  became  an  intolerable  nuisance.  Pliny  intimates  that  many 
of  the  fires  in  Rome  were  kindled  purposely  to  destroy  their  eggs. 

S  The  citrus-wood  tables,  so  prized  among  the  Romans,  cost  from  $40,000  to 
$50,000  apiece.  Seneca  is  said  to  have  owned  five  hundreri  citrus-wood  tables. 
Va^es  of  murrha— a  substance  identified  by  modern  scientists  with  glass,  Cliineso 
porcelain.  a-„'ate,  and  fluor  spar— were  fashionable,  and  fabulous  sums  were  paid 
for  them.  An  ex-coiiBul  under  Nero  had  a  murrha  wino-ladle  which  cost  him 
$.300,000.  and  which  on  his  death-bed  he  dclibrTalely  dashed  to  pieces,  to  prevent 
its  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  grasping  tyrant.  Bronze  and  marble  statues  were 
abundant  in  the  houses  and  gardens  of  the  rich,  and  cost  from  $1.')0  for  the  work 
of  an  ordinary  sculi)tor  to  |;30,00)  for  a  genuine  Phidias,  Reopa",  or  Praxiteles.  To 
RTOtify  such  ex[)ensive  tast(-s,  large  fortunes  wen'  neee«-iary,  and  tlie  Uomans— in 
early  times  averse  to  anything  but  arms  atid  agricullun!— developed  shrewd,  sharp 
bn«iness  qualities.  They  roamed  over  foreign  conntri(!s  in  search  of  speculatitms, 
and  turned  out  swarma  of  bankerfl  and  merchants,  who  amassed  enormous  sums  to 


116 


ROME. 


decked  with  white  hangings  embroidered  with  gold,  and  the  soft  wool- 
stuffed  ])illo\v,s  upon  which  the  guests  recline  are  covered  with  gor- 
geous i^urple.  Here,  after  his  daily  warm  and  vapor  bath,  the  per- 
fumed and  enervated  Roman  gatliers  a  few  friends— in  number  not 
more  than  the  Muses  nor  less  than  the  Graces — for  the  evening  supper 
(coena).  The  courses  follow  one  another  as  at  a  Grecian  banquet. 
Slaves  *  relieve  the  master  and  liis  guests  from  the  most  trifling  effort, 


PLAN    OF  THE    HUUSE  OF   PANSA. 

(v)  The  J-^esh'i>n/um,  or  haW',  (i)  The  Ostiu7n  ;  (2)  The  Atriztm,  off  which  are  six 
cubicula  or  sleeping-rooms  ;  (3)  The  Imphniiiim,  before  which  stands  the 
pedestal  or  altar,  of  the  household  gods  ;  (4)  The  Tablinu7n,  or  chief  room  ; 
(5)  The  Pinacotkeca,  or  library  and  picture  gallery;  (6)  The  Fauces,  or  corri- 
dor; (7)  The  Peristylium.  or  court,  with  (S)  its  central  fountain;  (9)  The 
j^ciis,  or  state-room ;  (10)  The  Triclinium  ;  (11)  The  kitchen  ;  (12)  The 
transverse  corridor,  with  garden  beyond  ;  and  (13)  The  Lararium,  a  recepta- 
cle for  the  more  favorite  gods,  and  for  statues  of  lUustdous  personages. 

carving  each  person's  food  or  breaking  it  into  fragments  which  he 
can  raise  to  his  mouth  with  his  fingers — forks  being  tinknown — and 
pouring  water  on  his  hands  at  every  remove.  The  strictest  etiquette 
prevails  ;  long-time  usages  and  traditions  are  followed ;  libations  are 
offered  to  the  protecting  gods  ;  spirited  conversation,  which  is 
undignified  and  Greekish,  is  banished  ;  and  only  solemn  or  caustic 
aphorisms  on  life  and  manners  are  heard.  "People  at  supper," 
says  Varro,  "should  be  neither  mute  nor  loquacious:  eloquence  is 
for  the  forum ;  silence  for  the  bed-chamber."  On  high  days,  rules 
are  banished  ;  the  host  becomes  the  "  Father  of  the  supper,"  convivial 
excesses  grow  coarse  and  absurd,  and  all  the  follies  and  vices  of  the 
Greek  symposium  are  exaggerated. 

he  spent  on  fashionable  whims.  (See  Business  Life  in  Ancient  Rome.  Harper's 
Half-hour  Series.) 

*  There  were  slaves  for  every  species  of  service  in  a  Roman  household,  and  their 
number  and  versatility  of  handicraft  remind  one  of  the  retinue  of  an  Egyptian  lord. 
Even  the  defective  memory  or  limited  talent  of  an  indolent  or  over-taxed  Roman 
was  supplemented  by  a  slave  at  his  side  whose  business  it  was  to  recall  forgotten 
incidents  and  duties,  to  tell  him  the  names  of  the  pereons  he  met,  or  to  suggest  ap- 
propriate literary  aUusions  in  his  conversation. 


THE     MAN"KERS     AND     CUSTOMS.  117 

Scene  III. — A  Tririmpkal  Procession. — Rome  is  in  her  holiday 
attire.  Streets  aud  squares  are  festively  adorned,  and  incense  burns 
on  the  altars  of  the  open  temples.  From  steps  and  stands,  improvised 
along  the  streets  for  the  eager  crowd,  grow  loud  and  louder  shouts  of 
'  lo  triumphe,"  for  the  procession  has  started  from  the  triumphal  gate 
on  its  way  through  the  city  up  to  the  Capitol.  First  come  the  lictors, 
opening  a  passage  for  the  senate,  the  city  magistrates,  and  important 
citizens.  Pipers  and  flute-players  follow.  Then  appear  the  spoils  and 
booty  ;  art-treasures,  gold  and  silver  coins,  valuable  plate,  products  of 
the  conquered  soil,  armor,  standards,  models  of  captured  cities  and 
ships,  pictures  of  battles,  tablets  inscribed  with  the  victor's  deeds,  and 
statues  personifying  the  towns  and  rivers  of  the  niiwly-subjected 
land, — all  carried  by  crowned  soldiers  on  the  points  of  long  lances, 
or  on  portable  stands.  Chained  kings,  princes,  and  nobles,  doomed  to 
the  Mamertine  prison,  walk  sullenly  behind  their  lost  treasures.  In 
their  wake  are  the  sacrificial  oxen  with  gilt  horns,  accompanied  by 
priests  ;  and  then,  preceded  Ijy  singers,  musicians,  and  jesters,  the  cen- 
tral object  of  all  this  grand  parade — the  a'ictoriotts  general.*  Clad 
in  a  tunic  borrowed  from  the  statue  of  the  Capitolino  Jupiter,  with  the 
eagle-topped  ivory  scepter  in  his  hand  and  the  triumphal  crown  held 
above  his  head,  the  con<iueror  proudly  stands  in  his  four-horse  chariot, 
followed  by  his  equally  proud,  victorious  army.  Through  the  Flami- 
iiian  Circus,  along  the  crowded  Velabrum  and  the  Circus  Maximus, 
by  the  Via  Sacra  and  tlio  Forum,  surges  the  vast  procession  up  to  the 
majestic  Capitol.  Here  the  triumphator  lays  his  golden  crown  in  the 
lap  of  Jupiter  and  makes  the  impof;ing  sacrifice.  A  fea.st  of  unusual 
sumptuousmss  ends  the  eventful  day. 

Scene  IV. — TTie  last  of  a  Roman  Emperor. — "It  is  the  Roman 
habit  to  consecrate  the  emperors  who  leave  heirs.  The  mortal  re- 
mains are  buried,  according  to  custom,  in  a  sph-ndid  manner  ;  but  the 
wax  image  of  the  emperor  is  j)laced  on  an  ivory  bed,  covered  with  gold- 
embroidered  carpet.",  in  front  of  the  ])alace.  The  expression  of  the 
face  is  that  of  one  dangerously  ill.  To  the  loft  side  of  the  bed  stand, 
during  a  greater  part  of  the  day,  the  members  of  the  senate  ;  to  the 
right,  the  ladies  entitled  by  birth  or  marriage  to  appear  at  court,  in  the 
usual  simple  white  mourning-dresses  without  gold  ornaments  or  neck- 
laces. This  ceremony  lasts  sevi'n  days,  during  which  time  the  imperial 
physicians  daily  approach  the  bed  as  if  to  examine  the  p.atient,  who, 
of  course,  is  declining  rapidly.  At  last  they  declare  the  emperor  dead. 
The  bier  is  now  transported  by  the  highest  bom  knights   and   tlie 

♦  Only  flictators,  ronsalf",  praetors,  niul.  occasionally,  Ic^atos  were  pomiittcd  the 
triumpliul  entriiijcc.  Sometimes  the  train  of  wpoiln  and  ciptivcn  wan  so  (rrcat  tliiit 
two,  tlirei;,  nrnl  even  fonr  (lnyt<  wcie  reqnirod  for  the  panidc.  In  later  times,  tlio 
triumphal  proceHBiou  was  exclusively  reserved  for  the  emperor. 


118  ROME. 

younger  senators  tlirough  the  Via  Sacra  to  the  old  Forum,  and  there 
deposited  on  a  scaffolding  built  in  the  manner  of  a  terrace.  On  one 
side  stand  young  patricians,  on  the  other  noble  ladies,  intoning  hymns 
and  paeans  in  honor  of  the  deceased  t(j  a  solemn,  sad  tune  ;  after  which 
tlie  bier  is  taken  up  again,  and  carried  to  the  Campus  Martius.  A 
wooden  structure  in  the  form  of  a  house  has  been  erected  on  large 
blijcks  of  wood  on  a  square  base  ;  the  inside  has  been  filled  with  dry 
sticks  ;  the  outside  is  adorned  with  gold-embroidered  carpets,  ivory 
statues,  and  various  sculptures.  The  bottom  story,  a  little  lower  than 
the  second,  sli  iws  the  same  form  and  ornamentation  as  this;  it  has 
open  doors  and  windows  ;  above  these  two  stories  rise  others,  growing 
narrow  toward  the  top  like  a  pyramid.  The  whole  structure  might  be 
compared  to  the  lighthouses  erected  in  harbors.  The  bier  is  placed 
in  the  second  story,  spices,  incense,  odoriferous  fruits  and  herbs  being 
heaped  round  it.  After  the  whole  room  has  been  filled  with  incense, 
the  knights  move  in  procession  round  the  entire  structure,  nnd  per- 
form some  military  evolutions  ;  they  are  followed  by  chariots  filled 
wit'i  persons  wearing  masks  and  clad  in  purple  robes,  who  represent 
historic  characters,  such  as  celebrated  generals  and  kings.  After  these 
ceremonies  are  over,  the  heir  to  the  throne  throws  a  torch  into  the 
house,  into  which,  at  the  same  time,  flames  are  dashed  from  all  sides, 
which,  fed  by  the  combustible  materials  and  the  incense,  soon  l-egin 
to  devour  the  building.  At  this  juncture  an  eagle  rises  into  the  air 
from  the  highest  story  as  from  a  lofty  battlement,  and  carries,  accord- 
ing to  the  idea  of  the  Komnns,  the  soul  of  the  dead  emperor  to  heaven  ; 
from  that  moment  he  partakes  of  the  honors  of  the  gods." — Herodian. 


4.    SUMMARY. 

1.  Political  History, — Rome  be^an  as  a  single  city.  The 
growth  oi  her  power  was  slow  but  steady.  She  became  head, — first, 
of  the  neighboring  settlements;  second,  of  Latium;  third,  of  Italy; 
and  fourth,  of  the  lands  around  the  Mediterranean.  In  her  early  his- 
tory, there  was  a  fabulous  period  during  which  she  was  ruled  by  kings. 
The  last  of  the  seven  monarchs  belonged  to  a  foreign  dynasty,  and 
upon  his  expulsion  a  republic  was  establisherl.  Two  centuries  of  con- 
flict ensued  between  the  patricians  and  the  plebs,  but  the  latter,  going 
ofttimes  to  Mount  Sacer,  gained  their  end  and  established  a  democracy. 

Meanwhile,  wars  with  powerful  neighbors  and  with  the  awe-in- 
spiring Gauls  had  developed  the  Eoman  character  in  all  its  sternness, 
integrity,  and  patriotism.  Eome  next  came  in  contact  with  Pyrrhus, 
and  learned  how  to  fortify  her  military  camps  ;  then  with  Carthage, 
and  she  found  out  the  value  of  a  navy.     An  apt  pupil,  she  gained  the 


8  U  M  M  A  K  Y  .  119 

mastery  of  the  sea,  invaded  Africa,  and  in  the  end  razed  Carthage  to 
the  ground.  Turning  to  the  west,  she  secured  Spain — the  silver- 
i;ri^duciug  country  of  that  age — and  Gaul,  whose  fiery  sons  filled  the 
depleted  ranks  of  her  legions.  At  the  east,  she  intrigued  where  she 
could  and  fought  where  she  must,  and  by  disorganizing  states  made 
them  first  her  dependencies,  and  then  her  provinces.  Greece,  Macedon, 
Asia  Minor,  Syria,  Egypt,  Babylon,  were  but  stepping-stones  in  her 
jirogrcss  until  Parthiu  alone  remained  to  bar  her  advance  to  the  Indus 
iinJ  the  ocean. 

But  within  her  gates  the  struggle  between  the  rich  and  the  poor 
Etill  went  on.  Crowds  of  slaves — captives  of  her  many  wars- 
thronged  her  streets,  kept  her  shops,  waited  in  her  homes,  tilled  her 
land,  and  tended  her  flocks.  The  plebeians,  shut  out  from  honest 
toil,  straggleJ  for  the  patrician's  dole.  The  Civil  Wars  of  Sulla  and 
Marius  drenched  her  pavem^'uts  with  the  blood  of  her  citizens.  The 
triumphs  of  Caesar  shed  a  gl^-am  of  glory  over  the  fading  republic,  but 
the  mis-aimed  daggers  of  Brutus  and  Cassius  that  slew  the  dictator 
struck  at  the  heart  of  liberty  as  well. 

Augustus  br  mght  in  the  (;mpire  and  an  era  of  peace.  Now  the 
army  gainel  control  of  the  state.  Weak  and  wicked  emperors,  the 
luxury  of  wealth,  the  influx  of  Oriental  profligacy,  the  growth  of 
atheism,  and  the  greed  of  conquest,  undermined  the  fabric  of  Roman 
greatness.  The  inhabitants  of  the  provinces  were  made  Romans,  and, 
Rome  itself  bein'f  lost  in  the  empire  it  had  created,  other  cities  became 
the  sents  of  government.  Amid  the  ruins  of  the  decaying  monarchy 
a  new  religion  supplanted  the  old,  and,  liually,  Teutonic  hordes  from 
the  north  overwhelmed  the  city  that  for  cjuturics  thcjir  own  soldiers 
had  alone  u])held. 

2.  Civilization.  —As  in  Greece  the  four  r.ncient  Attic  tribes  were 
subdivided  into  i.hratries,  gent'S,  and  hearths,  so  iu  Rome  tlie  three 
original  i>atrician  tribes  branched  into  curije,  gmtes,  and  fanuUcs,  the 
paterfamili-is  owning  all  the  property,  and  h  dding  the  life  of  his 
children  at  will. 

The  civil  mufjiHtratet  comprised  consuls,  questors,  ajdlles,  and 
prajtor.s. 

The  army  was  organized  in  Legions,  cohorts,  companies,  and  cen- 
turies, with  four  classes  of  f  lot-soldiers,  who  fought  with  the  piluni 
and  the  javelin,  protected  themselves  witli  heavy  breastplates,  an  1 
carried  on  si-ges  by  the  aid  f)f  l)allista3,  battering-rams,  catapults,  and 
movable  towers.  In  later  times,  the  ranks  were  filled  by  foreigners 
and  merconaries. 

Roman  Htcrnture,  cliild  of  the  Grecian,  is  rich  with  memorable 
nanu"*.  T'shrred  in  by  Liviu.s  Androiirns.  a  Greek  slave,  it  grew  wilh 
Najvius,  Ennius,  Plaulus,  Terence,  Cato,  an  1  Lucilius.     The  learned 


120  ROME. 

Varro,  the  florid  Cicero,  the  sweet  strained  Virgil,  the  genial  Horace, 
tlie  eliiquent  Livy,  and  the  polished  Sallust,  graced  tlie  last  century 
before  Christ.  The  next  hundred  years  produced  the  studious  Pliny 
the  Elder,  the  two  inseparable  friends — Pliny  the  Younger  and  Taci- 
tus, the  sarcastic  Juvenal,  and  the  wise  Seneca. 

The  monuments  of  the  Romans  comprise  splendid  aqueducts, 
triumphal  arches,  military  roads,  bridges,  harbors,  and  tombs.  Their 
magnificent  palaces  and  luxurious  thermae  were  fitted  up  with  reckless 
extravagance  and  dazzling  display.  All  the  spoils  of  conquered 
nations  enriched  their  capital,  and  all  the  foreign  arts  and  inventions 
were  impressed  into  their  service. 

The  proud,  dignified,  ambitious  Roman  had  no  love  or  tenderness 
for  aught  but  his  nati(jnal  supremacy.  Seldom  indulging  in  sentiment 
toward  family  or  kindred,  he  recognized  no  law  of  humanity  toward 
his  slaves.  His  religion  was  a  commercial  bargain  with  the  gods,  in 
which  each  was  at  liberty  to  outwit  the  other.  His  worship  was  mostly 
confined  to  the  public  ceremonies  at  the  shrine  of  Vesta,  and  the  con- 
stant household  ofEerings  to  the  Lares  and  Penates.  \l\s  public  games 
were  a  degraded  imitation  of  the  Grecian,  and  he  took  his  chief  delight 
in  bloody  gladiatorial  shows  and  wild-beast  fights. 

A  race  of  borrowers,  the  Romans  assimilated  into  their  nationality 
most  of  the  excellences  as  well  as  many  of  the  vices  of  other  peoples, 
for  centuries  stamping  the  whole  civilized  world  with  their  character, 
and  dominating  it  by  their  successes.  "  As  to  Rome  all  ancient  history 
converges,  so  from  Rome  all  modern  history  begins." 

Finally,  as  a  central  point  in  the  history  of  all  time,  in  the  midst  of 
the  brilliancy  of  the  Augustan  Age,  while  Cicero,  Sallust,  Virgil,  and 
Horace  were  fresh  in  the  memory  of  their  still  living  friends,  with 
Seneca  in  his  childhood  and  Livy  in  his  prime,  the  empire  at  its  best, 
and  Rome  radiant  in  its  growing  transformation  from  brick  to  marble 
under  the  guiding  rule  of  the  great  Augustus  Caesar,  there  was  born 
in  an  obscure  Roman  province  the  humble  Babe  whose  name  far  out- 
ranks all  these,  and  from  whose  nativity  are  dated  all  the  centuries 
which  have  succeeded. 


READING    REFERENCES, 

Merivale's  History  of  the  Eomans. — Ihne's  Hiatory  of  Rome,  and  Early  Rome.— 
Hulory  Primers  ;  Rome,  and  Roman  Antiquities^  edited  by  Green.— Arnold's  His- 
tory of  Rome.—Niebuhr''s  History  of  Roms.— Smith's  smaller  History  of  Rome.— 
Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire. — Guhl  and  Koner's  Life  of  the 
Greeks  and  Romans. — Knight's  Social  Life  of  the  Romans— Plutarch's  Lives.— Mil- 
man's  History  of  Christianity  .-Mommsen'  s  History  of  Rome. — Frovde's  Life  of  Ccesar. 
—Becker's  Charicles,  and  Gallus.—Macaulay's  Lays  of  Ancient  Rome. — Shakspere^s 


CHRONOLOGY. 


121 


JuHus  CcEsar,  Corioianvs,  and  Antony  and  Cleopatra.— For'!yth''s  Life  of  Cicero.— 
X'apoleon's  (III.)  Life  of  Casar.—  Canina''s  Edifices  of  Ancient  Rome.—Fergusson's 
History  of  Architecture.— Buttcer''s  Last  Bays  of  Pompeii,  and  liiemi  The  Last  of 
the  Tribunes.— Michtlet' s  Roman  Republic— ITeeren's  Historical  Researches.— Putz's 
Hand-book  of  Ancient  History.— Harems  'Walks  in  Rome.— Kin gsley''s  Hypatia—Lord^s 
Old  Roman  World. — Mann's  Ancient  and  Mediacal  Republics.— Lawrence's  Primer 
of  Roman  Literature. —  Collins'  Ancient  Classics  far  English  Readers  (a  series 
giving  st riking  passages  from  the  Greek  and  Roman  classics,  with  excellent  explana- 
tory notes,  lives  of  the  authors,  etc.). — Dyer's  Pompeii. — Herbennann's  Business  Life  in 
Ancient  Rome. —  Quackenhos'  Ancient  Literature  ya  useful  resume), —  Watson's 
Marcus  Aurelius.-Church's  Roman  Life  in  the  Days  of  Cicero. 


CH  RONOLOGY, 


B.  C. 

Rome  founded 753 

Republic  established 009 

The  Decemvirs 451 

Rome  taken  by  Gauls 390 

First  Samnite  War 343-341 

Great  Latin  War 340-;33S 

Second  Samnite  War o2&-3C4 

Third         "  "     298-290 

Wars  with  Pyrrhus 2S0-276 

Fir^^t  Punic  War 2ft4-241 

Second    "       "  218-201 

Battle  of  the  Trebia 218 

"     "  Lalje  Trasimenus 217 

"     "  Cannae 216 

Siege  of  Capua 214-211 

Battle  of  the  Metaurus 207 

"    "  Zama 202 

Second  Macedonian  War 230-197 

Battle  of  Magnesia 190 

Death  of  Hannibal  and  Scipio  Afri- 

canus  183 

Third  Macedonian  War 171-108 

Battle  of  Pydna 168 

Third  Punic  War 1 19-1 16 

Fall  of  Cart ha,'c  and  Corinth 116 

Death  of  Tiberius  Gracchus 1.33 

Jugurthine  War 111-104 

Uarius  defeated  Teutones  at  Aquaj 

Scxtia;  (Aix) 102 

Marlus  defeated  Cimbri .  101 

Social  War  00-H8 

Firet  Milhridatic  War K^M 

Ma-cacrc  by  Marius 87 

Second  Milhridatic  War 83-81 

Sulla's  Proncriptif)Ms 83 

Third  MItbridatic  War 74-63 

War  of  Spfirtacn-'. .  73-71 

Meditcmiiican  Piraten  67 

Conspiracy  of  CalUine 63 


B.C. 

First  Triumvu^te 60 

Cffisar  in  Gaul 58-49 

"      invades  Britain 55 

"      crosses  the  Rubicon 49 

Battle  of  Pharsalia — death  of  Pom- 

pey 48 

Suicide  of  Cato 46 

Caesar  murdered 44 

Second  Triumvirate,  death  of  Cicero  43 
Battle  of  Pliilippi,  death  of  Brutus 

and  Cassius 42 

Battle  of  Actium 31 

^-  TAugustus 31 


Tiberius 14 

Caligula  37 

Claudius 41 

Nero 54 

a    Galba 68 

Otho 69 

Vitellius 69 

Vespasian 69 

Titus 79 

Domitian 81 

Nerva 96 

Trajan 98 

IladriaD 117 

Antoninus  Pius 138 

M.  Aurelius  Antoninus 161-180 

L.  Vei-ns 161-169 

Commodus 180 

Pertrnax 193 

Didins  Julianus 193 

Si-ptiniiu.«  SoveiUH 193 

Cararalliis 211-217 

Geta 211-212 

MacriniiH 217 

Elairabalus  <thc  sun-priest) 218 

Alexander  Severus 222 


133 


ROME. 


in.  r 


238 


A.D. 

Maximinae. 235 

Gordian  I 

Gordian 

Pupienue  Masimus  \  ogo 

Balbinus ) 

Gordian  DI 23&-244 

Philip  the  Arabian 244 

Decius 249 

Gallus 251 

.(Einilian 253 

Valerian 253 

Gallienus 260 

Claudius  II 268 

Aurelian 270 

Tacitus 275 

Florian 276 

Probns 276 

Carus...   282 

CarinusandNumerian  ..  283 

Diocletian,  with  Maximian 284 

Constantius,  with  Galerius 305 

Constantine  I.  (the  Great),  with  Ga- 
lerius, Severus,  and  Maxentius . . .  306 


A.D. 

Constantine,  with  Licinlns ....  307 

Constantine,  with  Maximinus 308 

Constantine,  alone 323 

Constantine   II.,    Constantius    11., 

Constans  1 337 

Julian  the  Apostate 361 

Jovian 363 

Valentinian  1 364 

Gratian  and  Valentinian  II 375 

Valentinian  n 383 

Theodosius  (East  and  West) 393 

Honorius 395 

Theodosius  II.  (East  and  West) 423 

Valentinian  ni 425 

Petronius  Maximus 455 

Avitns 455 

Majorian 457 

Libius  Severus 461 

Anthemius 467 

Olybrius 473 

Glycerins 473 

Julius  Nepos 471 

Romulus  Augustulus 475-476 


TOMBS  ALONG  THE  APPIAN    WAY. 


Part    II. 

READINGS   IX   ROMAN   HISTORY. 


THE    ORIGIN    OF    THE    ROMANS. 

The  first  question  in  the  history  of  every  people  is,  What 
was  their  race  and  language?  and  next,  What  was  the 
earliest  form  of  their  society,  their  social  and  political 
organization  ?  Let  us  see  how  far  we  can  answer  these 
questions  with  respect  to  Rome. 

The  Latin  Race  and  Language.— The  language  of 
the  Romans  was  not  called  Roman,  but  Latin.  Politically, 
Rome  and  Latiuin  were  clearly  distinguished,  but  their 
language  appears  to  have  been  the  same.  This  language  is 
different  from  the  Etruscan,  and  from  the  Oscan ;  the 
Romans,  therefore,  are  so  far  marked  out  as  distinct  from 
the  great  nations  of  Central  Italy. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  connection  of  the  Latin  language 
with  the  Greek  is  manifest.  Many  common  words,  which 
no  nation  ever  derives  from  the  literature  of  another,  are 
the  same  in  Greek  and  Latin  ;  the  declensions  of  the  nouns 
and  verbs  are,  to  a  great  degree,  similar.  It  is  ]irobablc 
that  the  Latins  belonged  to  that  great  race  which,  in  very 
early  times,  overspread  both  Greece  and  Italy,  under  (be 
various  names  of  Pelasgian,  Tyrsenians,  and  Liculians.  It 
may  be  believed,  that  the  Ilcllenians  were  anciently  a  people 
of  this  same  race,  bul  that  some  peculiar  circumstances 
gave  to  them  a  distinct  and  superior  character,  and  raised 


12i  READINGS     IX      ROMAN      HISTORY. 

tlieni  so  far  above  their  brethren,  that,  in  after-ages,  they 
disclaimed  all  connection  with  them. 

But  in  the  Latin  language  there  is  another  element  besides 
that  which  it  has  in  common  with  the  Greek.  This  ele- 
ment belongs  to  the  languages  of  Central  Italy,  and  may  be 
called  Oscan.  Further,  Niebuhr  has  remarked,  that  whilst 
the  terms  relating  to  agriculture  and  domestic  life  are 
mostly  derived  from  the  Greek  part  of  the  language,  those 
relating  to  arms  and  war  are  mostly  Oscan.  It  seems,  then, 
not  only  that  the  Latins  were  a  mixed  people,  partly 
Pelasgian  and  partly  Oscan  ;  but  also  that  they  arose  out  of 
a  conquest  of  the  Pelasgians  by  the  Oscans :  so  that  the 
latter  were  the  ruling  class  of  the  united  nation  ;  the  former 
were  its  subjects. 

Differences  between  the  Romans  and  other  Latins. — 
The  Latin  language,  then,  may  afford  us  a  clue  to  the  origin 
of  the  Latin  people,  and,  so  far,  to  that  of  the  Eomans.  But 
it  does  not  explain  the  difference  between  the  Komans  and. 
the  Latins,  to  which  the  peculiar  fates  of  the  Eoman  people 
owe  their  origin.  We  must  inquire,  then,  what  the  Romans 
were,  which  the  other  Latins  were  not;  and  as  language 
cannot  aid  us  here,  we  must  have  recourse  to  other  assistance, 
to  geography  and  national  traditions.  And  thus,  at  the 
same  time,  we  shall  arrive  at  an  answer  to  the  second  ques- 
tion in  Roman  history,  What  was  the  earliest  form  of  civil 
society  at  Rome  ? 

If  we  look  at  the  map,  we  shall  see  that  Rome  lies  at  the 
furthest  extremity  of  Latium,  divided  from  Etruria  only  by 
the  Tiber,  and  having  the  Sabines  close  on  the  north, 
between  the  Tiber  and  the  Anio.  No  other  Latin  town,  so 
far  as  we  know,  was  built  on  the  Tiber ;  some  were  clus- 
tered on  and  around  the  Alban  hills,  others  lined  the 
coast  of  the  Mediterranean  ;  but  from  all  these  Rome,  by  its 


R  E  A  D  I  N'  G  S     IX     R  0  M  A  X     HISTORY.  125 

position,  stood  aloof.  Tradition  reports  tliat  as  Rome  was 
thus  apart  from  tlie  rest  of  the  Latin  cities,  and  so  near 
a  neighbor  to  the  Etruscans  and  Sabines,  its  population 
was  in  part  formed  on  of  one  of  these  nations,  and  many  of 
its  rites  and  institutions  borrowed  from  the  other.  Tradi- 
tion describes  the  very  iirst  founders  of  the  city  as  the 
shepherds  and  herdsmen  of  the  banks  of  the  Tiber,  and  tells 
how  their  numbers  were  presently  swelled  by  strangers  and 
outcasts  from  all  the  countries  round  aljout.  We  know 
that  for  all  points  of  detail,  and  for  keeping  a  correct 
account  of  time,  tradition  is  worthless.  It  is  very  possible 
tiiat  all  Etruscan  rites  and  usages  came  in  with  the 
Tarqninii,  and  were  falsely  carried  back  to  an  earlier  period. 
But  the  mixture  of  tiie  Sabines  with  the  original  people  of 
the  Palatine  hill,  cannot  be  doubted;  and  the  stories  of  the 
asylum,  and  of  the  violence  done  to  tiie  Sabine  women, 
seem  to  show  that  the  first  settlers  of  tlie  Palatine  were  a 
mixed  race,  in  wliich  other  blood  Avas  largely  mingled  with 
that  of  the  Latins. 

Tribal  Divisions  of  the  Romans. —The  people  or 
citizens  of  Rome  were  divided  into  the  three  tribes  of  the 
Ramnenses,  Titicnses,  and  Luceres,  to  whatever  races  we 
may  sui)pose  tliem  to  belong,  or  at  whatever  time  and  under 
whatever  circumstances  they  may  have  become  united. 
Each  of  these  tribes  was  divided  into  ten  smaller  bodies 
calk'd  curioe;  so  that  the  whole  people  consisted  of  thirty 
curias;  these  same  divisiotis  were  in  war  rcjjresented  by  the 
thirty  centuries  which  made  up  the  legion,  just  as  the  three 
tribes  were  represented  by  the  three  centuries  of  liorsemen  ; 
but  that  the  soldiers  of  each  century  were  exactly  a  hundred, 
i.s  an  unfounded  conclusion. 

I  have  said  that  each  trit)e  was  divided  info  ten  curijv;  it 
would  be  more  correct  to  say,  that  the  union   of  ten   curiaj 


126  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

formed  the  tribe.  For  the  state  grew  out  of  the  junction 
of  certain  original  elements  ;  and  these  were  neither  the 
tribes,  nor  even  the  curiae,  btit  the  gentes,  or  houses  which 
made  up  the  curicW  The  first  element  of  the  whole  system 
was  the  gens,  or  house,  a  nnion  of  several  families  who 
were  bound  together  by  the  joint  performance  of  certain 
religions  rites. 

The  Houses  and  their  Clients. — The  state  being  thus 
made  up  of  families,  and  every  family  consisting  from  the 
earliest  times  of  members  and  dependents,  all  the  original 
inhabitants  of  Rome  belonged  to  one  of  two  classes:  they  were 
either  members  of  a  family,  and,  if  so,  members  of  a  house, 
of  a  curia\  of  a  tribe,  and  so,  lastly,  of  the  state ;  or  they 
were  dependents  on  a  family,  and,  if  so,  their  relation  went 
no  further  than  the  immediate  aggregate  of  families,  that 
is,  the  house.  With  the  curise,  with  the  tribe,  and  with  the 
state,  they  had  no  connection.  These  members  of  families 
were  the  original  citizens  of  Eome  ;  these  dependents  on 
families  were  the  original  clients. 

The  Commons,  or  Plebs. — The  idea  of  clientship  was 
that  of  a  wholly  private  relation  ;  the  clients  were  some- 
thing to  their  respective  patrons,  but  to  the  state  they  were 
nothing.  But  wherever  states  composed  in  this  manner,  of 
a  body  of  houses  with  their  clients,  had  been  long  estab- 
lished, there  grew  np  amidst,  or  close  beside  them,  created 
in  most  instances  by  conquest,  a  population  of  a  very  dis- 
tinct kind.  Strangers  might  come  to  live  in  the  land ;  or, 
more  commonly,  the  inhabitants  of  a  neighboring  district 
might  be  conquered,  and  be  united  with  their  conquerors  as 
a  subject  people.  Xow  this  population  had  no  connection 
with  the  houses  separately,  but  only  with  a  state  composed 
of  those  houses  ;  this,  therefore,  was  wholly  a  political,  not 
a  domestic  relation ;  it  united  personal  and  private  liberty 


READINGS      IX      K  0  M  A  N      HISTORY.  12? 

with  political  subjectiuu.  This  inferior  population  j)osscssed 
property,  regulated  their  own  municipal  as  well  as  domestic 
affairs,  and  as  free  men  fought  in  the  armies  of  wliat  was 
now  their  common  country.  But,  strictly,  they  were  not 
its  citizens;  they  could  not  intermarry  with  the  houses; 
they  could  not  belong  to  the  state,  for  they  belonged  to  no 
house,  and  therefore  to  no  curiae  and  no  tribe  ;  consequently, 
tiiey  had  no  share  in  the  state's  government,  nor  in  the 
state's  property.  What  the  state  conquered  in  war  became 
the  property  of  the  state,  and  therefore  they  had  no  claim 
to  it  ;  with  the  state  demesne,  with  whatever,  in  short, 
belonged  to  the  state  in  its  aggregate  capacity,  these,  as 
being  merely  its  neighbors,  and  not  its  members,  had  no 
concern. 

Such  an  inferior  population,  free  personally,  but  subject 
politically,  not  slaves,  yet  not  citizens,  was  the  original 
Plebs,  the  commons  of  Eomc. 

Only  Members  of  the  Houses  -were  Citizens. — The 
mass  of  the  Konum  comniuii.s  were  conquered  Latins.  These, 
besides  receiving  grants  of  a  portion  of  their  former  lands, 
to  be  held  by  them  as  Roman  citizens,  had  also  the  hill 
Aventinus  assigned  as  a  residence  to  those  who  removcil  to 
Rome.  The  Aventine  was  without  the  walls,  although  near 
to  them  ;  thus  the  commons  were,  even  in  the  nature  of  their 
abode,  like  the  Pfalburger  of  the  Middle  Ages,  men  not 
admitted  to  live  within  the  city,  but  enjoying  its  protection 
against  foreign  enemies. 

It  will  be  understoiKl  at  once,  that  whatever  is  i-aid  of  the 
people  in  these  early  times,  refers  only  to  the  full  citizens, 
that  is,  to  the  members  of  the  houses.  Tiie  asseml)ly  of  the 
people  was  the  assembly  of  the  curia' ;  that  is,  the  great 
council  of  the  members  of  the  houses  ;  while  the  senate, 
consisting  of  two  hundred  senators,  chosen  in  equal  num- 


128  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

bcrs   from   tlic    two   higher   tribes   of  the   Rumneuses  and 
Titienses,  was  their  smaller  or  ordinary  council. — Arnold. 

CAUSES  OF  ROME'S  EARLY  GREATNESS. 

The  Campagna  and  the  Tiber. — To  trace  the  great- 
ness of  Rome  from  her  first  beginnings,  we  must  go  back  to 
a  time  wlien  the  Tiber  flowed  through  the  open  waste  of  the 
wide  Campagna.  This  plain,  a  scene  so  memorable  in 
history,  extends  along  the  central  portion  of  the  western 
shore  of  Italy,  for  the  length  of  about  ninety  miles,  having 
an  average  breadth  of  twenty-seven  miles.  A  spectator, 
standing  on  Mount  Janiculus,  overlooking  the  site  of  Eome, 
sees  the  lower  chain  of  the  Apennines  across  the  undulating 
surface  of  the  Campagna  at  the  distance  of  about  ten  or 
fifteen  miles,  and  behind  it  the  central  ridge,  capped  with 
snow  for  half  the  year.  The  chief  objects  of  the  panorama 
are  as  memorable  for  their  historical  and  poetical  associations, 
as  they  are  conspicuous  for  their  beauty.  To  the  north-west, 
the  plain  of  the  Aro  is  bounded  by  the  Etruscan  hills.  On 
tlie  north  about  twenty  miles  distant,  stands  out  Soracte, 
whose  snow-clad  summit  invited  Horace  to  enjoy  the 
pleasures  of  winter.  Eastward,  across  the  Tiber,  lies  the 
beautiful  range  of  the  Sabine  Apennines  ;  and  conspicuous 
above  the  rest  the  peak  of  Lucretilis,  which  slieltered  the 
poet's  summer  retreat.  I^Tearer  in  the  foreground,  where 
the  Anio  bursts  out  of  the  hills,  is  Tibur,  whose  beauties  he 
extols  above  all  the  most  famous  sites  of  Greece.  Then 
follow  the  hills  of  Latium,  with  their  sterner  associations; 
the  rocky  summit  of  Prteneste  standing  out  in  front  of  the 
chain,  celebrated  in  medieval  as  well  as  ancient  history; 
and  the  isolated  volcanic  mass  of  the  Alban  Mount,  tlie 
sanctuary  of  the  Latin  race,  down  the  side  of  which  the 


R  E  A  D  I  X  G  S      IX      R  O  M  A  X      HISTORY.  129 

"  Long  White  City  "  extended  to  the  lake  of  the  same  name. 
Its  highest  summit,  crowned  of  old  with  the  temple  of 
Jupiter  Latiaris,  was  visible  even  to  mariners  at  sea.  From 
this  point  there  is  an  uninterrupted  view  to  the  south-east 
over  the  plain,  till  it  sinks  into  the  sea,  which  is  dis- 
tinguished from  the  land  only  by  the  brighter  light  reflected 
from  its  waters. 

The  southern  extremity  of  the  Campagna  forms  a  dead 
level,  opening  on  to  the  Gulf  of  Gtvta,  and  watered  by 
several  streams.  The  ''Pomptinus  Ager"  as  it  was  called, 
from  Pontia  (a  town  which  disappeared  very  early),  was 
once  celebrated  for  its  fertility,  and  contained  twenty-three 
flourishing  towns.  But  before  the  middle  of  the  second 
century  b.  c,  the  neglect  to  regulate  the  water-courses  had 
converted  it  into  a  pestilential  marsh,  which  was  only 
partially  drained  by  Cethegus  (b.  c.  100)  and  Julius  Caesar. 
The  canal,  which  continued  the  Via  Appia  through  the 
Pomptine  Marshes  to  the  tem])le  of  Feronia,  at  the  foot  of 
the  hill  of  Anxur,  furnished  Horace  with  his  well-known 
picture  of  the  lazy  and  extortionate  boatmen,  and  the 
traveler,  kept  awake  by  gnats  and  frogs,  singing  of  his 
mistress  till  he  falls  asleep.  The  drainage  works  were 
resumed  about  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century,  but  the 
marshes  are  still  u  hot-bed  of  malaria  in  the  summer.  Their 
extent  is  about  twenty-four  miles  long  by  eight  or  ten  wide. 

'J'he  northern  ])art  of  the  Campagna  is  watered  by  the 
Tiber  and  its  confluents,  of  which  the  Anio  is  the  chief. 
'I'he  sacred  river  of  tlie  Romans,  "  Father  Tiber,"  has  a 
course  of  about  200  miles  from  its  source  near  Tifernum,  in 
the  Apennines,  to  its  mouth  at  Oslia.  From  Ostia  the 
Tiber  was  navigable  for  the  largest  shi|)s  up  to  Rome,  where 
the  river  is  about  ;J00  feet  wide,  and  from  12  to  18  deej). 

The  character  of  the  Tiber,  as  a  rapid  mountain  stream, 


130  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

flowing  through  no  lake  to  regulate  its  volume  and  receive 
its  alluvial  deposits,  is  summed  up  in  the  one  line  of  Virgil, 

"  Vorticibus  rapidis  et  multa  ilavus  arena  ;" 

and  its  turbid  water  still  justifies  the  frequent  epithet  of 
the  "yellow  Tiber."  Its  rapid  eddies,  frequent  floods,  and 
large  alluvial  deposits,  have  produced  great  effects  on  its 
course  through  the  Campagna  and  on  the  site  of  Kome 
itself.  All  the  engineering  skill  of  the  masters  of  the  world 
was  unable  to  protect  their  city  from  the  inundations  of  its 
sacred  stream.  It  was  not  indeed  till  the  Etrascan  kings 
executed  the  great  drain,  the  "Cloaca  Maxima,''  that  the 
valleys  between  the  hills  of  Rome  were  made  dry  land  ;  and 
it  seems  that  at  no  distant  time  the  hills  nearer  to  the  river 
were  islands. — Philip  Smith. 

The  Palatine  Hill.— The  Cradle  of  Rome.— The 
Romans  regarded  the  Palatine  as  the  cradle  of  the  ''  City  of 
the  Seven  Hills."  It  was  from  the  opposite  slope  of  the 
Janiculum  that  they  delighted  to  behold  the  chain  of 
eminences  which  surrounded  this  central  summit,  and 
comprehended  within  its  circuit  the  most  interesting  sites 
and  monuments  of  their  history.  The  configuration  of  the 
six  exterior  heights,  from  the  Capitoline  to  the  Aventine  on 
the  right,  presented  an  almost  continuous  ridge  of  unequal 
elevation,  abutting  at  either  extremity  on  the  channel  of 
the  Tiber.  Between  the  Aventine  and  the  Caelian  a  small 
stream  made  its  way  into  the  inclosurc,  and  the  ravine  in 
this  quarter  was  diligently  fortified  from  an  early  period. 
But  in  the  depths  of  antiquity,  before  the  foundations  of 
Rome  were  laid,  the  single  outlet  to  the  waters  which 
collected  round  the  base  of  the  Palatine,  was  choked  by  a 
desolate  morass,  and  the  rank  growth  of  primitive  forests 
buried  the  central  eminence  in  almost  impenetrable  conceal- 


READIXCtS      IX     ROM  AX      HISTORY.  131 

ment.  Such  a  position  was  admirably  adapted  for  a  i)lace 
of  retreat,  and  offered  an  impregnable  shelter  to  crime  and. 
rapine.  It  seemed  created  by  nature  herself  to  be  the 
stronghold  of  a  people  of  reserved  character  and  predatory 
habits.  It  was  destined  to  become  the  den  of  the  "  Wolves  of 
Italy."  The  legend  of  the  foundation  of  the  Eternal  City, 
which  affirmed  that  the  divine  omens  decided  the  contest 
of  the  brothers  and  the  pretensions  of  the  rival  summits, 
furnished  a  striking  illustration  of  the  subsequent  fortunes 
of  the  Eoman  people.  They  chose  between  a  career  of  con- 
quest and  plunder,  and  of  discovery  and  commerce. 
Romulus  founded  Eome,  Eemus  might  have  founded  a 
Carthage. — Merivai.e. 

The  Seven  Hills  and  the  Power  of  Political  Con- 
federacy.—What  was  the  cause,  we  may  well  ask,  that  gave 
such  a  superiority  to  Rome  over  other  cities  of  Italy?  Why 
did  not  Veil,  or  Naples,  or  Syracuse  become  the  nucleus  of 
a  great  empire  ?  Had  Rome  an  advantage  over  them  with 
regard  to  soil,  climate,  or  geographical  situation  ?  This 
question  must  be  answered  in  the  negative.  The  soil  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Rome  was  comparatively  sterile,  the  climate 
unhealthy,  the  situation  unfavorable  for  commerce.  The 
city  had  no  good  port,  nor  was  there  a  large  fertile  country 
behind  it  which  might  have  supplied  materials  for  exports 
and  markets  for  foreign  goods. 

If  Rome  had  no  such  advantages,  was  it  to  any  advantages 
,of  race  and  descent  that  she  owed  her  eminence?  Again 
we  must  answer  in  the  negative.  The  pe(){)le  of  Rome  were 
of  the  same  race  as  their  neighbors.  Tiiey  could  l)oast  of  no 
superiority  on  the  score  of  descent.  The  Sabines  and  liatms, 
who  combined  to  form  the  fundamental  element  of  the 
Homan  people,  were  offshoots  of  the  Sabellian  stock  to  which 
all  the  native,  or  aboriginal  population  of  Italy  belong,  from 


WZ  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

the  Apenuines  south  of  tlie  Po  to  the  extreme  end  of  the 
peninsula.  It  was  therefore  not  superiority  of  race  which 
gave  the  Romans  predominance  in  Italy. 

Perhaps  we  may  be  led  to  surmise  that  it  was  a  fortunate 
succession  of  great  men  which  raised  the  Eomuus  above  the 
other  Italian  communities.  But  Eome  was  singularly  sterile 
in  great  men.  .She  was  made  powerful  and  predominant  by 
the  almost  unheeded  labor  of  a  vast  number  of  citizens  of 
average  ability,  not  by  men  whose  names  have  the  ring  of 
Solon,  Pericles,  Epaminondas,  or  Alexander.  The  kings 
and  statesmen  to  whom  the  establishment  of  the  State  and 
the  laws  is  ascribed,  such  as  Eomulns,  Numa,  Servius,  and 
Brutus,  belong  not  to  ;:uthentic  history,  but  to  jire- 
historic  fable;  and  when  politicians  arose  who  exerted  an 
influence  beyond  that  of  private  citizens  in  the  service  of 
the  State,  men  who,  like  Sulla  and  Caesar,  wielded  in  their 
hands  the  power  of  the  whole  community,  the  greatness  of 
republican  Eome  had  passed  away. 

If,  then,  the  first  cause  of  Eoman  greatness,  the  first 
impulse  given  to  national  development,  is  to  be  found 
neither  in  the  advantages  cf  soil  and  situation,  nor  in  the 
superiority  of  race,  nor  in  the  genius  of  great  men,  shall  we 
be  driven  to  say  that  it  was  mere  chance,  or,  in  more  reverent 
language,  Divine  Providence,  which  selected  Eome  as  the 
seat  of  empire  over  Italy  and  the  world  ?  Such  a  conclusion 
would  be  but  au  evasion  of  the  diflBculty  and  a  coufession  of 
weakness  unworthy  of  the  spirit  of  historical  inquiry. 
Providence  does  not  act  contrary  to  fixed  laws,  but  accord- 
ing to  them  ;  and  it  is  for  us  to  investigate  these  laws,  not 
to  ignore  them. 

If  we  compare  the  site  of  Eome  with  the  sites  of  the 
numerous  cities  which  simultaneously  with  the  earliest 
settlement  on  the  Seven  Hills  covered  the  plain  of  Latium 


READINGS     IX     R  0  M  A  X     HISTORY.  i;J3 

aud  the  adjoiuiug  hills,  we  find  that  each  of  the  other  towns 
was  built  ou  some  steep,  or  easily  defended  hill.  Some  of 
these  hill-towns,  such  as  Praeueste,  Avere  actually  stronger 
than  either  the  Roman  Capitol,  or  the  Palatine  hill.  But 
nowhere  do  we  find,  as  on  the  Tiber,  a  group  of  hills  possess- 
ing each  the  advantage  of  defensibility,  and  yet  lying  so 
close  to  one  another  that  the  political  isolation  of  each  was 
impossible,  and  that  some  kind  of  federation  for  the  main- 
tenance of  internal  peace  became  absolutely  necessary. 
People  who  live  at  a  distance  from  each  other  may  indulge 
in  occasional  strife ;  Imt  if  by  })roximity  of  habitation  they 
are  compelled  to  have  daily  intercourse  with  one  another, 
they  are  obliged  to  agree  uj)on  some  terms  of  amicable  life, 
if  they  do  not  prefer  the  miseries  which  internecine  Avar 
must  entail  on  all.  This  was  the  condition  of  the  various 
settlements  on  the  seven  hills,  which  lay  so  near  together 
that  nature  itself  seemed  to  have  destined  them  to  form  a 
combined  city.  There  are  dim,  half-fabulous  traditions 
which  speak  of  wars  waged  between  the  peoi)le  of  the 
Quirinal  hill  and  that  of  the  Palatine.  But  the  s:mie  tradi- 
tions also  report  an  amicable  settlement  of  the  combats,  an 
agreement  to  live  in  peace,  a  combined  government  of  the 
respective  chiefs ;  in  fact,  they  describe  a  confederation  of 
the  two  peoples,  and  their  combination  into  one  political 
community. 

1'hus,  then,  arose  a  spirit  of  political  association  based 
upon  calculations  of  interest,  but  sanctioned  by  the  sense  of 
right;  nor  when  it  had  accomplished  its  first  task,  the 
security  of  the  Seven  hills,  did  it  die  awny,  but  continued  to 
work  on  a  large  scale  when  Pome  had  become  great.  City 
after  city  and  tribe  aftei-  tribe  were  invited,  or  compelled,  to 
join   the  leading  power  as  allies,  until  the  whole  of  Italy, 


134  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

though  hi  fact  subject  to  Rome,  appeared  to  Ije  only  one 
vast  coufederacj. 

We  have  seen  that  the  geographical  position  of  Rome,  and 
the  peculiarity  of  race,  cannot  be  deemed  to  have  been  the 
first  causes  of  Eoman  gTeatness.  Now,  however,  after  we 
have  discovered  the  first  cause,  we  may  and  must  admit  that 
both  these  circumstances  powerfully  contributed  to  accelerate 
the  growth  of  Eome.  The  comparative  sterility  of  the 
territory  encouraged  the  warlike  spirit  of  the  early  Eomans, 
whose  frequent  wars  seem  to  have  been  undertaken  oftener 
for  the  sake  of  booty  than  in  Just  self-defence.  It  is  possi- 
ble, too,  that  the  unhealthiness  of  the  surrounding  district 
at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  may  have  served  as  a  barrier 
to  ward  off  attacks,  when  other  resources  failed.  The 
remoteness  of  the  sea  and  the  want  of  a  good  port  were  a 
protection  from  the  numerous  pirates  who  infested  the 
Tyrrhenian  waters.  But  it  was  especially  the  situation  of 
Rome  in  the  middle  of  the  peninsula,  cutting  off  the 
northern  from  the  southern  half,  which  enabled  her  to 
divide  her  enemies  and  to  subdue  them  separately.  Lastly, 
the  similarity  of  race,  which  bound  the  Romans  by  the 
ties  of  blood  and  common  customs  to  all  the  indigenous 
races  of  Italy,  enabled  them  to  repel  the  invasions  of  their  non- 
Italian  enemies,  and  to  appear  in  the  light  of  champions  and 
protectors  of  Italy. — Iiine. 

The  Rapid  G-rowth  of  the  Imperial  City. — The 
progress  of  Rome  was  ruj)id  during  the  Republic;  during  the 
Empire  it  became  portentous.  The  city  soon  climbed  to 
the  summits  of  the  five  remaining  hills,  and,  descending 
their  sides,  filled  the  intermediate  spaces  with  piles  of 
masonry  raised  so  high  that  "one  story,"  says  Cicero.  '•  toppled 
over  another,  and  seemed  to  he  suspended  in  the  air."  She 
descended   to   the   Tiber,    and   stretched  herself  like  some 


READINGS      IX      ROMAN      HISTORY.  135 

great  monster  along  its  banks,  crowning  with  roofs  the 
Janicuhim,  and  then  the  Vatican  hill,  northward  to  the 
Milvian  bridge,  and  to  the  soutli  in  the  direction  of  the 
great  port  which  connected  her  with  the  Mediterranean  and 
the  outer  world.  In  other  directions  it  was  tlie  same. 
Toward  the  Tiber  and  Praeneste,  she  covered  the  fields  of 
Latium  with  a  cloud  of  edifices,  "  like  the  snow  of  Homer's 
Olympus,"  says  the  rhetorician  Aristides,  "  which  veils  the 
summit  of  the  mountains,  the  wide  plains,  and  the  culti- 
vated farms  of  men.'" — Sheppard. 

Rome  the  Mistress  of  the  Mediterranean. — Atten- 
tion has  not  perhaps  been  sufficiently  accorded  to  the  cen- 
tral situation  of  Rome  itself  among  the  vast  regions  over 
which  her  well-organized  executive  extended.  The  Mediter- 
ranean rolled  like  a  great  artery  through  tliis  compact  body 
of  states  and  countries.  This  sea  has  from  immemorial  ages 
formed  the  highway  of  the  nations  as  they  passed  to  and 
fro  on  the  mission  of  civilization.  More  has  been  said  and 
sung  in  its  praise  than  has  been  said  or  sung  of  any  other 
portion  of  tlie  earth's  surface,  not  excepting  Italy  itself. 
''The  grand  object  of  traveling,"  says  Samuel  Johnson, 
"is  to  see  the  shores  of  the  Mediten-aneaii.  All  our  relig- 
ion, almost  all  our  arts,  almost  all  that  sets  us  above  savages, 
has  come  to  us  from  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean." 
Conquest,  commerce,  civil  liberty,  and  science,  all  seem  to 
have  started  into  life  upon  its  banks,  and  pushed  their 
pathway  across  its  waves.  All  the  great  cities  of  the  ancient 
world  looked  down  u])on  its  waters,  or  their  tributary  seas, — 
Tyre,  Carthage,  Athens,  Corinth,  Alexandria,  Rome,  Con- 
stantinople, Marseilles.  The  tide  of  conquest  was  })erpet- 
ually  rolling  toward  its  shores.  Shalmanescr,  Sennacherib, 
Nebucbadtiezzar,  sought,  one  after  another,  to  win  the 
Syrian  .seaboard.     'J'he  great  rulers  of  the  Persian  dynasty, 


136  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Cyrus,  Xerxes,  and  Darius,  precipitated  themselves  upou 
Ionian  and  European  Greece.  Beside  its  waves,  in  a  pass 
between  the  sea  and  the  Cilician  mountains,  Alexander 
smote  down  the  Persian  Empire,  and  returned  to  found  a 
capital  for  the  world  at  the  spot  where  it  receives  the  waters 
of  the  Nile.  Soon  Carthage  spread  her  commerce  along  its 
southern  shore,  colonized  the  coast  of  Spain,  and  passed 
upon  her  adventurous  path  beyond  the  Pillars  of  Hercules. 
Carthage,  in  her  turn,  surrendered  the  central  sea,  the 
symbol  and  means  of  empire,  to  her  rival  Eome ;  and  Rome 
embraced  it  more  completely  still,  with  the  encircling  arms 
of  conquest,  from  Gades  to  Byzantium. — Sheppard. 

ROMAN  BALLADS  THE  SOURCE  OF  ROMAN 
LEGENDARY  HISTORY. 

The  Latin  literature  ivhich  has  come  down  to  us  is  of 
later  date  than  the  commencement  of  the  second  Punic  War, 
and  consists  almost  exclusively  of  works  fashioned  on  Greek 
models.  The  Latin  meters,  heroic,  elegiac,  lyric  and  dra- 
matic, are  of  Greek  origin.  The  best  Latin  epic  poetry  is  the 
feeble  echo  of  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey.  The  best  Latin 
eclogues  are  imitations  of  Theocritus.  The  plan  of  the  most 
finished  didactic  poem  in  the  Latin  tongue  was  taken  from 
Hesiod.  The  Latin  tragedies  are  bad  copies  of  the  master- 
pieces of  Sophocles  and  Euripides.  The  Latin  comedies  arc 
free  translations  from  Demophilus,  Menander,  and  Apollodo- 
rus.  The  Latin  philosophy  was  borrowed,  without  altera- 
tion, from  the  Portico  and  the  Academy;  and  the  great 
Latin  orators  constantly  proposed  to  themselves  as  patterns 
the  speeches  of  Demosthenes  and  Lysias. 

But  there  was  an  earlier  Latin  literature,  a  literature  truly 
Latin,  which  has  wholly  perished,  which  had,  indeed,  almost 


READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY.  137 

wholly  perished  loug  before  those  whom  we  ara  in  the  habit 
of  regarding  as  the  greatest  Latin  writers  were  born. 

We  can  scarcely  hesitate  to  pronounce  that  the  magnifi- 
cent, pathetic,  and  truly  national  legends,  whicli  present  so 
striking  a  contrast  to  all  that  surrounds  them,  are  broken 
and  defaced  fragments  of  that  early  poetry  which,  even  in 
the  age  of  Cato  the  Censor,  had  become  antiquated,  and  of 
which  Tully  had  never  heard  a  line. 

The  early  history  of  Rome  is  indeed  far  more  poetical  than 
anything  else  in  Latin  literature.  The  loves  of  the  Vestal 
and  the  Grod  of  War,  the  cradle  hiid  among  the  reeds  of 
Tiber,  the  fig-tree,  the  she-wolf,  the  shepherd's  cabin,  the 
recognition,  the  fratricide,  the  rape  of  the  Sabines,  the  death 
of  Tarpeia,  the  fall  of  llostius  llostilius,  the  struggle  of  Me- 
tius  Curtius  through  the  marsh,  the  women  rushing  with  torn 
raiment  and  disheveled  hair  between  their  fathers  and  their 
husbands,  the  nightly  meetings  of  Xuma  and  the  Nymph  by 
the  well  in  the  sacred  grove,  the  light  of  the  three  Romans 
and  the  three  Albans,  the  purchase  of  the  Sibylline  books,  the 
crime  of  Tullia,  the  simulated  madness  of  Brutus,  the  am- 
biguous reply  of  tlie  Delphian  oracle  to  the  Tarquins,  the 
wrongs  of  Lucretia,  the  heroic  action  of  Horatius  Codes,  of 
Scaevola,  and  of  Cloelia,  the  battle  of  Regillus  won  by  the  aid 
of  Castor  and  Polhix,  the  defence  of  Cremera,  the  touching 
story  of  Coriolanus,  tiie  still  more  touching  story  of  Virginia, 
the  wild  legend  about  the  draining  of  the  Alban  lake,  the 
combat  between  Valerius  Corvus  and  the  gigantic  (Jaiil,  are 
among  the  many  instances  which  will  at  once  suggest  them- 
selves to  every  reader. 

It  is  not  difficult  t)  trace  the  process  l)y  whicli  the  oUl 
songs  were  transmuted  into  the  form  which  they  now  wear. 
Funeral  panegyric  and  chronicle  appear  to  have  been  the  in- 
termediate links  which  connected  tlic  lost  ballads   with  the 


138  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

histories  now  extant.  From  a  very  early  period  it  was  the 
usage  that  an  oration  should  be  pronounced  over  the  remains 
of  a  noble  Roman.  The  orator,  as  we  learn  from  Polybius, 
was  expected  on  such  an  occasion  to  recapitulate  all  the  ser- 
vices which  the  ancestors  of  the  deceased  had,  from  the  ear- 
liest time,  rendered  to  the  commonwealth.  There  can  be 
little  doubt  that  the  speaker  on  whom  this  duty  was  imposed, 
would  make  use  of  all  tlje  stories  suited  to  his  purpose  which 
were  to  be  found  in  the  popular  lays.  There  can  be  as  little 
doubt  that  the  family  of  an  eminent  man  would  preserve  a 
copy  of  the  speech  which  had  been  pronounced  over  his 
corpse.  The  compilers  of  the  early  chronicles  would  have 
recourse  to  the  speeches  ;  and  the  great  historians  of  a 
later  period  v/ould  have  recourse  to  the  chronicles. 

It  may  be  worth  while  to  select  a  particular  story,  and  to 
trace  its  probable  progress  through  these  stages.  The  de- 
scription of  the  migration  of  the  Fabian  house  to  Cremera 
is  one  of  the  fiiiest  of  the  many  fine  passages  which  lie  thick 
in  the  earlier  books  of  Livy.  The  Consul,  clad  in  his  mili- 
tary garb,  stands  in  the  vestibule  of  his  house,  marshaling 
his  clan,  tliree  hundred  and  six  fighting  men,  all  of  the  proud 
patrician  blood,  all  Avorthy  to  be  attended  by  the  fasces,  and 
to  command  the  legions.  A  sad  and  anxious  retinue  of 
friends  accompanies  the  adventurers  through  the  streets,  but 
the  voice  of  lamentation  is  drowned  by  the  shouts  of  admir- 
ing thousands.  As  the  procession  passes  the  Capitol,  prayers 
and  vows  are  poured  forth,  but  iu  vain.  The  devoted  band, 
leaving  Janus  on  the  right,  marches  to  its  doom  through  the 
Gate  of  Evil  Luck.  After  achieving  high  deeds  of  valor 
against  overwhelming  numbers,  all  perished  save  one  child, 
the  stock  from  which  the  great  Fabian  race  was  destined 
again  to  spring  for  the  safety  and  glory  of  the  common- 
wealth.    That  this  fine  romance,  the  details  of  which  are  so 


READINGS     IN     KOMAX     HISTOEY.  139 

full  of  poetical  truth,  and  so  utterly  destitute  of  all  show  of 
historical  truth,  came  originally  from  some  lay  which  had 
often  been  sung  with  great  applause  at  banquets,  is  in  the 
liighest  degree  probable.  ]S"or  is  it  difficult  to  imagine  a 
mode  in  which  the  transmission  might  have  taken  place. 
The  celebrated  Quintus  Fabius  Maximus,  who  died  about 
twenty  years  before  the  First  Punic  War,  and  more  than 
forty  years  before  Ennius  was  born,  is  said  to  have  been  in- 
terred with  extraordinary  pomp.  In  the  eulogy  pronounced 
over  his  body  all  the  great  exploits  of  his  ancestors  were 
doubtless  recounted  and  exaggerated.  If  there  were  then 
extant  songs  which  gave  a  vivid  and  touching  description  of 
an  event,  the  saddest  and  most  glorious  in  the  long  history 
of  the  Fabian  house,  nothing  could  be  more  natural  than 
that  the  panegyrist  should  borrow  from  such  songs  their 
finest  touches,  in  order  to  adorn  his  speech.  A  few  genera- 
tions later  the  songs  would  perhaps  be  forgotten,  or  remem- 
bered only  by  the  shepherds  and  vine-dressers.  But  the 
speech  would  certainly  be  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the 
Fabian  nobles.  Fal>ius  Pictor  would  be  well  acquainted  with 
a  document  so  interesting  to  his  personal  feelings,  and  would 
insert  large  extracts  from  it  in  his  rude  chronicle.  That 
chronicle,  as  we  know,  was  the  oldest  to  which  Livy  had 
access.  Livy  would  at  a  glance  distinguish  the  bold  strokes 
of  the  forgotten  poet  from  the  dull  and  feeble  narrative  by 
which  they  were  surrounded,  would  retouch  them  with  deli- 
cate and  j)owerful  pencil,  and  would  make  them  immortal. 

Such,  or  nearly  such,  appears  to  have  been  the  process  by 
which  the  lost  ballad-poetry  of  Rome  was  transformed  into 
history.  To  reverse  that  ])rocess,  to  transform  some  portions 
of  early  Roman  history  back  into  the  poetry  out  of  which 
they  were  made,  is  the  object  of  (his  work. — Preface  to 
"Lays  of  Anx'ient  Rome." — Macaulay. 


140  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 


THE    BATTLE    OF    LAKE    REG-ILLUS 

*  *  *     But  north  looked  the  Dictator  ; 

North  looked  he  long  and  hard  ; 
And  spake  to  Caius  Cossus, 
The  Captain  of  liis  Guard  ; 
"  Caius,  of  all  the  Komans 

Thou  hast  the  keenest  sight ; 
Say,  what  through  yonder  storm  of  dust 
Comes  from  the  Latian  right  ?  " 

Then  answered  Caius  Cossus: 

"  I  see  an  evil  sight ; 
The  banner  of  proud  Tusculum 

Comes  from  the  Latian  right ; 
I  see  the  plumed  horsemen  ; 

And  far  before  the  rest 
I  see  the  dark-grey  charger, 

I  see  the  purple  vest ; 
I  see  the  golden  helmet 

That  shines  far  off  like  flame  ; 
So  ever  rides  Mamilius, 

Prince  of  the  Latian  name." 

"  Now  hearken,  Caius  Cossus  : 

Spring  on  thy  horse's  back  ; 
Ride  as  the  wolves  of  Apennine 

Were  all  upon  thy  track  ; 
Haste  to  our  southward  battle. 

And  never  draw  thy  rein 
Until  thou  find  Herminius, 

And  bid  him  come  amain." 

So  Aulus  spake,  and  turned  him 

Again  to  that  fierce  strife  ; 
And  Caius  Cossus  mounted 

And  rode  for  death  and  life. 

*  *  *     Herminius  beat  his  bosom, 

But  never  a  word  he  spake  ; 
He  clasped  his  hand  in  Auster's  mane, 
He  gave  his  reins  a  shake: 


HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY 


141 


Away,  away  went  Auster, 

Like  an  arrow  from  the  bow  ; 
Black  Auster  was  the  fleetest  steed 

From  Aufidus  to  Po. 

Mamilius  spied  Herminius, 

And  dashed  across  the  way  :— 
'  HiTminius,  I  have  sought  thee 

Through  many  a  bloody  day. 
One  of  us  two,  Herminius, 

Shall  never  more  go  home  ; 
I  will  lay  on  for  Tusculum, 

And  lay  thou  on  for  Rome  ! " 
All  round  them  paust'd  the  battle. 

While  met  in  mortal  fray 
The  Roman  and  the  Tusculan, 

The  htjrscs  black  and  grey. 
Herminius  smote  Mamilius 

Through  breast-plate  and  through  breast 
And  fast  flowed  out  the  purple  blood 

Over  the  purple  vest. 
Mamilius  smote  Herminius 

Through  h('ad-f)iece  and  through  head  ; 
And  side  by  side  those  chiefs  of  pride 

Together  fell  down  dead. 


'ia;;,^^^ 


14:2  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

*  *  *     Fast,  fast,  with  lieels  wild  s[)uruiiig, 

The  dark-giey  charger  fled  : 
He  burst  through  ranks  of  figlitiug  men  ; 

He  sprang  o'er  heaps  of  dead. 
His  bridle  far  out-streaming, 

His  flanks  all  blood  and  foam, 
He  sought  the  southern  mountains. 

The  mountains  of  his  home. 
The  pass  was  steep  and  nagged, 

The  wolves  tliey  howled  and  whined  ; 
But  he  ran  like  a  whirlwind  up  the  pass. 

And  he  left  the  wolves  behind. 
Through  many  a  startled  hamlet 

Thundered  his  flying  feet ; 
He  rushed  through  the  gate  of  Tusculum 

He  rushed  up  the  long  white  street ; 
He  rushed  by  tower  and  temple, 

And  paused  not  from  his  race 
Till  he  stood  before  his  master's  door 

In  the  stately  market-place. 

But,  like  a  graven  image. 
Black  Auster  kept  his  place, 

And  ever  wistfully  he  looked 
In  his  dead  master's  face. 

*  *  *     Then  Aulus  the  Dictator 

Stroked  Auster's  raven  mane. 
With  heed  he  looked  imto  the  girths. 
With  heed  unto  the  rein. 
"  Now  bear  me  well,  black  Auster, 
Into  yon  thick  array  ; 
And  thou  and  I  will  have  revenge 
For  thy  good  lord  this  day." 

So  spake  he  ;  and  was  buckling 

Tighter  black  Auster's  band. 
When  he  was  aware  of  a  princely  pair 

That  rode  at  his  right  hand 
So  like  they  were,  no  mortal 

Might  one  from  other  know  : 
White  as  snow  their  armor  was  ; 

Their  steeds  were  white  as  snow. 


READINGS     i:S"     ROMAN     HISTORY.  143 

Never  on  earthly  anvil 

Did  sucli  rare  armor  gleam  ; 
And  never  did  such  gallant  steeds 

Drink  of  an  earthly  stream. 

And  all  who  saw  them  trembled 

And  pale  grew  every  cheek  ; 
And  Aulus  the  Dictator 

Scarce  gathered  voice  to  speak. 


*  * 


Then  the  fierce  trumpet -flourish 

From  earth  to  heaven  arose  ; 
The  kites  know  well  the  long  stern  swell 

That  bids  the  Roman  close. 
Then  the  good  sword  of  Aulus 

Was  lifted  up  to  slay  : 
Then,  like  a  crag  down  Apennine, 

Rushed  Auster  through  the  fray. 
But  under  those  strange  horsemen 

Still  thicker  lay  the  slain  ; 
And  after  those  strange  horses 

Black  Auster  toiled  in  vain. 

Sempronius  Atratinus 

Sate  in  the  Eastern  Gate, 
Beside  him  were  three  Fathers, 

Each  in  his  chair  of  state  ; 
And  all  around  tlie  portal, 

And  high  above  the  wall, 
Stood  a  great  throng  of  people, 

But  sad  and  silent  all  ; 
Young  lads,  and  stooping  elders 

That  might  not  bear  the  mail. 
Matrons  witli  lips  that  (piivered, 

And  maids  with  faces  jiale. 
Since  the  first  gleam  of  daylight, 

Sempronius  had  nf>t  ceased 
To  listen  for  the  rushing 

Of  horse-hoofs  from  the  east. 

The  mist  of  eve  was  rising. 

The  Him  was  liastening  down. 
When  he  was  aware  of  a  princely  ]m\T 

Fast  pricking  toward.s  the  town. 


144  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

So  like  tliey  were,  mau  never 

Saw  twins  so  like  before  ; 
Red  with  gore  their  armor  was, 

Their  steeds  were  red  with  gore. 

"  Hail  to  the  great  Asylum ! 

Hail  to  the  hill-tops  seven  ! 
Hail  to  the  fire  that  burns  for  aye, 

And  the  shield  that  fell  from  heaven  ! 
This  day,  l)y  Lake  Regilhis, 

Under  the  Porcian  height, 
All  in  the  lauds  of  Tusculum 

Was  fought  a  glorious  fight. 
To-morrow  your  Dictator 

Shall  bring  in  triumph  home 
The  spoils  of  thirty  cities 

To  deck  the  shrines  of  Rome !  " 

Then  burst  from  that  great  concourse 

A  shout  that  shook  the  towers. 
And  some  ran  north,  and  some  ran  south. 

Crying,  "  The  day  is  ours !  " 
But  on  rode  these  strange  horsemen. 

With  slow  and  lordly  pace  ; 
And  none  who  saw  their  bearing 

Durst  ask  their  name  or  race. 
On  rode  thc^y  to  the  Forum, 

While  laurel-boughs  and  flowers, 
From  house-tops  and  from  windows, 

Fell  on  their  crests  in  showers. 
When  they  drew  nigh  to  Vesta, 

They  vaulted  down  amain, 
And  washed  their  horses  in  the  well 

That  springs  by  Vesta's  fane. 
And  straight  again  they  mounted. 

And  rode  to  Vesta's  door; 
Then,  like  a  blast,  away  they  passed. 

And  no  man  saw  them  more. 

Macaulay 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  145 


PEEIOD     OF    THE     PUI^IO    WAES. 

Rome  in  the  Third  Century  B.  C. — From  the  Gallic 
conflagration  Eome  gradually  rose  to  greater  splendor.  By 
degrees  the  forum  assumed  a  more  imposing  appearance.    In 

the  place  of  the    butcher^'  sliops   beautiful    porticoes  were 


ROMAN    HOME 


erected,  where  silversmiths  and  Ijankors  carried  on  their  busi- 
ness ;.  on  festive  occasions  the  columns  were  ornamented 
with  captured  arms.  The  platform  for  the  i)ublic  orators 
was  decorated  Avith  the  beaks  of  the  ships  taken  at  Antiiim 
(3.38  I?,  c).  Various  works  of  art  and  statues  were  erected 
all  around.*     In  the  short  space  of  twelve  years,  eight  new 

•  Mo«t  of  thece,  probably,  were  bought,  in  Elruria  or  wore  spoils  from  Etniscan 
and  Greek  (owns  and  ufre  faNcly  given  out  nn  Komnn  workf.  Noihiiii:  was  eaxier 
than  to  give  a  ntatne  a  Koman  name.  Almont  any  Greek  male  ntalue  might  pass  fot 
RnmuluH  It  was  cuHtomary  to  convey  nolemnly  to  Rome  the  principiil  ficity  of  a 
conquered  town,  and  to  tdvc  it  a  name  and  place  in  the  Roman  worHhij).  What  waa 
more  natural  than  that  other  workH  of  art  nhould  Hhare  the  name  fate  ? 


146  EEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

temples  are  said  to  have  been  vowed  or  built.  A  large 
portion  of  the  booty  made  in  the  wars  with  the  Samnites 
and  with  Pyrrhus  was  devoted  to  the  adornment  of  the 
town. 

Care  was  now  taken  not  only  to  adorn  Eome  with  works 
of  art,  but  also  to  make  improvements  for  the  convenience, 
health  and  comfort  of  the  inhabitants.  The  grandest  public 
work  of  this  class  was  the  great  sewer,  which  is  stated  to 
have  been  constructed  in  the  Etruscan  period  under  Tar- 
quinius  Priscus.  Gradually  the  sediles  began  to  pave  a  few 
streets  from  the  proceeds  of  fines  inflicted  for  the  violation 
of  the  Licinian  land  laws.  Ajjpius  Claudius  constructed  the 
first  aqueduct,  and  after  the  termination  of  the  war  with 
Pyrrhus,  2ilanius  Curius  began  to  build  a  second  with  the 
spoils  taken  in  that  war  (273  B.  c). 

While  Rome,  in  consequence  of  the  extension  of  the  Roman 
dominion,  became  more  and  more  the  seat  of  industry,  trade, 
and  art;  while  increasing  wealth  banished  the  old  simplicity 
and  rustic  contentment,  and  changed  the  external  appearance 
of  the  city,  a  greater  freedom  showed  itself  in  the  observance 
of  the  old  customs  and  in  the  rules  of  social  and  family  life. 
The  strict  laws  of  the  paternal  authority  were  relaxed;  the 
political  ties  which  bound  together  the  members  of  a  house 
and  of  a  family  were  loosened.  The  solemn  form  of  mar- 
riage by  "confarreatio,"  connected  with  auspicia  and  sacri- 
fices, was  more  and  more  superseded  even  in  patrician  houses 
by  a  kind  of  civil  marriage.  In  every  way  the  barriers  w^ere 
broken  down  which  in  former  times  had  confined  the  individ- 
ual within  the  limits  of  his  family,  had  hampered  his  free- 
dom of  action,  and  had  placed  an  intermediate  authority 
between  him  and  the  state.  The  ancient  tribes  of  Ramnes, 
Titles,  and  Luceres  became  things  of  the  past  and  were  sur- 
rendered to  oblivion ;  the  members  of  the  different  houses 


HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 


147 


ceased  to  act  for  common  political  or  social  purposes : 
religious  ceremonies  alone  preserved  a  faint  memory  of  what 
had  once  been  a  vigorous  institution. 

During  the  Samnite  wars,  the  great  mass  of  the  Roman 
people  retained  the  old  simplicity  of  life  in  their  dress,  their 
dwellings,  their   food   and  drink.      Their   recreations   and 


CHARIOT  RACE. 


rejoicings,  their  popular  festivals  and  domestic  pleasures, 
were  essentially  the  same  as  before.  They  were  always  fond 
of  holydays  and  religious  shows.  They  never  tired  of  public 
processions.  The  highest  aspiration  of  the  most  ambitious 
citizen  was  to  enter  Rome  at  the  head  of  a  victorious  army, 
exhibiting  rich  spoils  and  captured  enemies  ;  to  pass  ahmg 
the  Sacred  Way  and  the  Forum  amidst  the  acclamations  of 
the  people  dressed  in  their  holyday  attire  ;  to  ascend  the 
Capitol,  and  in  the  temple  of  Jupiter  to  render  thanks,  in 
the  name  of  the  people,  for  the  victory  which  the  god  had 


148  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

vouchsafed  to  them.  Whilst  the  triumphant  consular  gen- 
eral ascended^he  steps  to  the  Capitol,  the  captive  leader  of 
the  enemy  was  led  into  the  dismal  dungeon  to  die.  (See  in- 
stance of  Caius  Pontius,  p.  33.) 

The  triumphal  processions  were  the  first  public  rejoicings 
of  the  warlike  peoj)le  of  Rome,  hut  at  a  very  early  period  the 
so-called  Great  or  Roman  games  were  established,  and  several 
others  in  course  of  time.  These  games  consisted  at  first  of 
chariot  racing  and  boxing,  and  were  celebrated  in  the  great 
race-course,  between  the  Aventine  and  the  Palatine.  For  a 
long  time  the  Romans  were  contented  with  these  innocent 
and  bloodless  exhibitions.  But  in  the  beginning  of  the  Punic 
wars,  the  hideous  gladiatorial  combats  (p.  101)  were  intro- 
duced.— Ihne. 

HANNIBAL. 

The  Genius  of  Hannibal. — The  Duke  of  Wellington 
was  of  opinion  that  Hannibal  was  the  greatest  of  all 
generals.  Twice  in  history  has  there  been  witnessed  the 
struggle  of  the  highest  individual  genius  against  the  re- 
sources and  institutions  of  a  great  nation  ;  and  in  both  cases 
the  nation  has  been  victorious.  For  seventeen  years  Hanni- 
bal strove  against  Rome ;  for  sixteen  years  Napoleon  Buona- 
parte strove  against  England:  the  efforts  of  the  first  ended 
in  Zama,  those  of  the  second  in  Waterloo. 

It  is  not  merely  through  our  ignorance  of  the  internal 
state  of  Carthage,  that  Hannibal  stands  so  prominent  in  all 
our  conceptions  of  the  second  Punic  war;  he  was  really  its 
moving  and  directing  power;  and  the  energy  of  his  coiintry 
was  but  a  light  reflected  from  his  own.  History  therefore 
gathers  itself  into  his  single  person  ;  in  that  vast  tempest, 
which  from  north  and  south,  from  the  west  and  the  east, 
broke  upon  Italy,  we  see  nothing  but  Hannibal. 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  149 

But  if  Hannibal's  genius  may  be  likened  to  the  Homeric 
god,  who  in  his  hatred  of  the  Trojans  rises  from  the  deep  to 
rally  the  fainting  Greeks,  and  to  lead  them  against  the 
enemy;  so  the  calm  courage  with  which  Hector  met  his 
more  than  liuman  adversary  in  his  country's  cause,  is  no 
nnworthy  image  of  the  nnyielding  magnanimity  displayed 
by  the  aristocracy  of  Eome.  The  senate  which  voted  its 
thanks  to  its  political  enemy,  Varro,  after  his  disastrous 
defeat,  "  because  he  had  not  despaired  of  the  Common- 
wealth," and  which  disdained  either  to  solicit,  or  to  reprove, 
or  to  threaten,  or  in  any  way  to  notice  the  twelve  colonies 
which  had  refused  their  accustomed  supplies  of  men  for  the 
army,  is  far  more  to  be  honored  than  the  conqueror  of 
Zania.  Xever  was  the  wisdom  of  God's  providence  more 
manifest  than  in  the  issue  of  the  struggle  between  Eome 
und  Carthage.  It  was  clearly  for  the  good  of  mankind, 
that  Ilanniltal  should  be  conquered  :  his  triumph  would 
have  stopped  the  progress  of  the  world. — Aunold. 

Hannibal  at  the  G-ates  of  Rome  (i).  4^).— Under  the 
walls  of  Cusinuni,  Hannibal  remained  encam})cd  for  two 
days,  ravaging  the  country  all  around  ;  thence  he  came 
into  the  Fregellan  territory,  to  the  river  Liris,  where  he 
found  the  bridge  broken  down  by  the  Fregellans  in  order  to 
impede  his  progress.  A  messenger  from  Fregella,  who  had 
traveled  a  day  and  a  night  without  intermission,  arriving 
at  Rome,  caused  the  greatest  consternation  ;  and  the  whole 
city  was  thrown  into  a  state  of  alarm  l)y  the  running  u\)  and 
down  of  persons  who  made  vague  additions  to  what  they 
heard,  and  thus  increjised  the  confusion  which  the  original 
intelligence  created.  The  lamentations  of  women  were  not 
only  heard  from  private  houses,  but  the  matrons  from  every 
quarter,  rushing  into  the  public  streets,  ran  up  and  down 
around   the   shrines  of  the  gods,  sweeping  the  altars  with 


150  READINGS     IN"     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

their  disheveled  hair,  tlirowing  themselves  upou  their 
knees  and  stretching  their  uplifted  hands  to  heaven  and  the 
gods,  imploring  them  to  rescue  the  city  of  Eome  out  of  the 
hands  of  their  enemies,  and  preserve  the  Eoman  mothers 
and  their  children  from  harm.  The  senate  sat  in  the  forum 
near  the  magistrates,  in  case  they  should  wish  to  consult 
them.  Some  were  receiving  orders  and  departing  to  their 
own  department  of  duty;  others  were  offering  themselves 
wherever  there  might  )je  occasion  for  their  aid.  Troops 
were  posted  in  the  citadel,  in  the  Capitol,  upon  the  walls 
around  the  city,  and  also  on  the  Alban  mount,  and  the  fort 
of^sula.  Meanwhile,  Hannibal  advanced  his  camp  to  tho 
Auio,  three  miles  from  the  city.  Fixing  his  position  there, 
he  advanced  with  two  thousand  horse  from  the  Colline  gate 
as  far  as  the  temple  of  Hercules,  and  riding  up,  took  as  near 
a  view  as  he  could  of  the  walls  and  site  of  the  city.  Flaccus, 
indignant  that  he  should  do  this  so  freely  and  so  much  at 
his  ease,  sent  out  a  party  of  cavalry,  with  orders  to  disi)lace 
and  drive  back  to  their  camp  the  cavalry  of  tlie  enem)\ 
After  the  figlit  had  begun,  the  consuls  ordered  the 
Numidian  deserters  who  were  on  the  Aventine,  to  the  num- 
ber of  twelve  hundred,  to  march  through  the  midst  of  the 
city  to  the  Esquilias,  judging  tliat  no  troops  were  better 
calculated  to  fight  among  the  hollows,  the  garden  walls,  and 
tombs,  or  in  the  enclosed  roads  which  were  on  all  sides. 
But  some  persons,  seeing  them  from  the  citadel  and  Capitol 
as  they  filed  off  on  horseback  down  the  Pul)lician  hill, 
cried  out  that  the  Aventine  was  taken.  This  circumstance 
occasioned  such  confusion  and  terror,  that  if  the  Cartha- 
ginian camp  had  not  been  without  the  city,  the  whole 
multitude,  such  was  their  alarm,  would  have  rushed  out. 
They  then  fled  for  refuge  into  their  houses  and  upon  the 
roofs,  where  they  threw  stones  and  weapons  on  their  own 


READIXGS     IX     ROilAN     HISTORY.  151 

soldiers  as  they  passed  aloug  the  streets,  taking  them  for 
eiiemies.  Nor  could  the  tumult  be  rejDressed,  or  the  mis- 
take explained,  as  the  streets  were  througed  with  crowds 
of  rustics  and  cattle,  which  the  sudden  alarm  had  driven 
into  the  city.  The  battle  between  the  cavalry  was  success- 
ful, and  the  enemy  were  diiven  away;  and  as  it  was 
necessary  to  repress  the  tumults  which  were  arising  in 
several  quarters  without  any  cause,  it  was  resolved  that  all 
who  had  been  dictators,  consuls,  or  censors,  should  be 
invested  with  authority  till  such  time  as  the  enemy  had 
retired  from  the  wall. 

The  next  day  Hannibal,  crossing  the  Anio,  drew  out  all 
his  forces  in  order  of  battle  ;  nor  did  Flaccus  and  the 
consuls  dechne  to  fight.  When  the  troops  on  both  sides 
were  drawn  up  to  try  the  issue  of  a  battle,  in  which  Eome 
was  to  be  the  prize  of  the  victors,  a  violent  shower  of  rain 
mingled  with  hail  created  such  disorder  in  both  the  lines, 
that  the  troops,  scarcely  able  to  hold  their  arms,  retired  to 
their  camps.  On  the  following  day,  likewise,  a  similar 
tempest  separated  the  armies  marshaled  on  the  same 
ground ;  but  after  thoy  had  retired  to  their  camps  tlie 
weather  became  wonderfully  serene  and  traiuiuil.  The 
Carthaginians  considered  this  circumstance  as  a  Divine 
interposition,  and  it  is  reported  that  Hannibal  was  heard  to 
say,  that  ''sometimes  he  wanted  the  will  to  make  himself 
master  of  Rome  ;  at  other  times  the  opportunity."  Two 
other  circumstances  also,  one  inconsiderable,  the  other 
important,  diiniiiished  his  hopes.  The  important  one  was, 
that  while  he  lay  with  his  armed  troo})S  near  the  walls  of 
the  city,  he  was  informed  that  troops  had  marched  out  of  it 
with  colors  living,  as  a  reinforcement  for  S])ain  ;  that  of  less 
importance  was,  tliat  he  \v;i-  informed  by  one  of  his 
prisoners,  that   the  very  ground  on  which  his  camp  stood 


152  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

was  sold  at  tliis  very  time,  without  any  diminution  in  its 
price.  Indeed,  so  great  an  insult  and  indignity  did  it 
ai)pear  to  him  tiiat  a  purchaser  should  be  found  at  Rome 
fur  the  very  soil  which  he  held  and  possessed  by  right  of 
conquest,  that  he  immediately  called  a  crier,  and  ordered 
that  the  silversmiths'  shops,  which  at  that  time  stood 
around  the  Eoman  forum,  should  be  put  np  for  sale. 
Induced  by  these  circumstances,  he  retired  to  the  river 
Tutia,  six  miles  from  the  city,  whence  he  proceeded  to  the 
grove  of  Feronia,  where  was  a  temple  at  that  time  celebrated 
for  its  riches.  The  Oapenatians  and  the  people  of  other  states 
in  the  neighborhood,  by  bringing  here  their  first  fruits  and 
other  offerings  according  to  their  abilities,  kept  it  decorated 
with  al)undance  of  gold  and  silver.  Of  all  these  offerings  the 
temple  was  now  despoiled.  After  the  departure  of  Hanni- 
bal, vast  heaps  of  bniss  were  found  there,  as  the  soldiers, 
from  a  religious  feeling,  had  thrown  in  pieces  of  uncoined 
brass. — Livy. 

HASDRUBAL. 

At  the  Metaurus  (p.  44). —  In  order  to  determine 
HannibaFs  movements,  Hasdrubal,  when  he  left  Pla- 
centia,  sent  off  six  horsemen,  to  say  he  was  marching  upon 
Etruria,  and  that  the  two  brothers  were  to  effect  their  junc- 
tion in  Umbria.  With  marvelous  skill  and  good  fortune 
nasdrul)ars  horsemen  made  their  way  through  the  whole 
length  of  Italy.  But  Hannibal's  rapid  movement  into  Brut- 
tin  m  disconcerted  them  :  they  attempted  to  follow  him 
thither;  but  mistaking  their  way,  and  getting  too  near  to 
Tarentum,  they  fell  in  with  some  foragers  of  the  army  of 
Q.  Claudius,  and  were  made  prisoners.  The  praetor  instantly 
sent  them  under  a  strong  escort  to  Nero  (the  consul).  They 
were  the  bearers  of  a  letter  from  Hasdrubal  to  his  brother, 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  153 

containing  the  whole  plan  of  their  future  operations;  it 
was  written,  not  in  cypher,  but  in  the  common  Carthaginian 
language  and  character;  and  the  interpreter  read  its  con- 
tents in  Latin  to  the  consul. 

Nero  took  his  resolution  on  the  instant.  He  despatched 
the  letter  to  the  senate,  urging  the  immediate  recall  of  Ful- 
vius  with  his  army  from  Capua  to  Rome  ;  the  calling  out  of 
every  Roman  who  could  bear  arms;  and  the  marching  for- 
ward of  the  two  home  legions  to  Narnia,  to  defend  that  nar- 
row gorge  of  the  Flaminian  road  against  the  invader.  At 
the  same  time  he  told  the  senate  what  he  was  going  to  do 
himself.  He  j^icked  out  7000  men,  of  whom  1000  were  horse, 
the  flower  of  his  whole  army;  he  ordered  them  to  hold  them- 
selves in  readiness  for  a  secret  expedition  into  Lucania,  to 
surprise  one  of  Hannibal's  garrisons  ;  and  as  soon  as  it  was 
dark,  he  pvit  himself  at  their  head,  leaving  his  lieutenant, 
Q.  Catius,  in  command  of  the  main  army,  and  began  his 
march. 

His  march  was  not  towards  Lucania.  Already  before  he 
left  his  camp  had  he  sent  forward  horsemen  on  the  road  lead- 
ing to  Picenum  and  Umbria,  witli  the  consul's  orders  tliat 
all  the  provisions  of  the  country  should  be  brought  down 
to  the  road-side,  that  all  horses  and  draught  cattle  should 
be  led  thither  also,  and  carriages  for  the  transport  of  the 
weaker  or  wearied  soldiers.  Life  and  deatii  were  upon  his 
speed, — the  life  and  death  of  his  country.  His  march  was 
towards  the  camp  of  his  colleague,  before  Sena;  his  hope  was 
to  crush  Hasdrubal  with  their  combined  and  overwhelming 
for(;es,  whilst  Hannibal,  wailing  for  that  letter  which  he 
would  never  receive,  should  remain  still  in  Apulia. 

When  Xero  had  reached  a  sufficient  distance  from  Hanni- 
bal, he  disclosed  the  secret  of  his  expedition  to  his  soldiers. 
They  felt  the  glory  of  their  mission,  and  shared  the  spirit  of 


154  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

their  leader.  Nor  was  it  a  little  tliiug  to  witness  the  uni- 
versal enthusiasm  which  everywhere  welcomed  their  march. 
Meu  and  women,  the  whole  population  of  tlie  country, 
crowded  to  the  roadside ;  meat,  drink,  clothing,  horses,  car- 
riages, were  pressed  upon  the  soldiers;  and  happy  was  the 
man  from  whom  they  would  accept  them.  Every  tongue 
blessed  them  as  deliverers;  incense  rose  on  hastily  built 
altars,  where  the  people,  kneeling  as  the  army  passed,  poured 
forth  prayers  and  vows  to  the  gods  for  their  safe  and  vic- 
torious return.  The  soldiers  would  scarcely  receive  what 
was  offered  to  them ;  they  would  not  halt ;  they  ate  stand- 
ing in  their  ranks  ;  night  and  day  they  hastened  onwards, 
scarcely  allowing  themselves  a  brief  interval  of  rest.  In  six 
or  seven  days  the  march  was  accomplished.  Livius  had  been 
forewarned  of  his  colleague's  approach,  and  Nero  entered  the 
camp  by  night,  concealing  his  arrival  from  Hasdrubal  no  less 
successfully  than  he  had  hidden  his  departure  from  Hannibal. 

The  new  comers  were  to  be  received  into  the  tents  of 
Livius'  soldiers;  for  any  enlargement  of  the  camp  would 
have  betrayed  the  secret.  They  were  more  than  seven  thou- 
sand meu,  for  their  numbers  had  been  swelled  on  their  march  ; 
vetei'ans  who  had  retired  from  war,  and  youths  too  young  to 
be  enlisted,  having  pressed  Nero  to  let  them  share  in  his  en- 
terprise. A  council  was  held  the  next  morning;  and  though 
Livius  and  L.  Porcius,  the  prastor,  urged  Nero  to  allow  his 
men  some  rest  before  he  led  them  to  battle,  he  pleaded  so 
strongly  the  importance  of  not  losing  a  single  day  lest  Han- 
nibal should  be  upon  their  rear,  that  it  was  agreed  to  fight 
immediately.  The  red  ensign  was  hoisted  as  soon  as  the 
council  broke  up ;  and  the  soldiers  marciied  out  and  formed 
in  order  of  battle. 

The  enemy,  whose  camp,  according  to  the  system  of  ancient 
warfare,  was  only  half  a  mile  distant  from  that  of  the  Ro- 


R  E  A  D  I  X  G  S     IX     R  O  M  A  X     HISTORY.  lo5 

mans,  marched  out  and  formed  iu  Hue  to  meet  them.  But 
as  Hasdrubal  rode  forward  t)  recouuoitre  the  Roman  army, 
their  increased  numbers  struck  him ;  and  other  circumstances, 
it  is  said,  having  increased  his  suspicions,  he  led  back  his 
men  into  their  camp,  and  sent  out  some  horsemen  to  collect 
information.  The  Romans  then  returned  to  their  own  camp  ; 
and  Hasdrubal's  horsemen  rode  round  it  at  a  distance,  to  see 
if  it  were  larger  than  usual,  or  in  the  hope  of  picking  up 
some  stragglers.  One  thing  alone,  it  is  said,  revealed  the 
secret :  the  trumpet,  which  gave  the  signal  for  the  several 
duties  of  the  day,  was  heard  to  sound  as  usual  once  in  the 
camp  of  the  prsetor,  but  twice  in  that  of  Livius.  This,  we 
are  told,  satisfied  Hasdrubal  that  both  the  consuls  were  before 
him.  Unable  to  understand  how  Xero  had  escaped  from 
Hannibal,  and  dreading  the  worst,  he  resolved  to  retire  to  a 
greater  distance  from  the  enemy  ;  and  having  put  out  all  his 
fires,  he  set  his  army  in  motion  as  soon  as  night  fell,  and 
retreated  towards  Metaurus. 

According  to  Livy,  Hasdrubal  marched  back  fourteen 
miles;  but  his  guides  deserted  him  and  escaped  unobserved 
in  the  darkness,  so  that,  when  the  army  reached  Metaurus, 
they  could  not  find  the  fords.  He  began  to  ascend  the  river, 
in  the  hope  of  passing  it  easily  when  daylight  came,  but  its 
windings  delayed  him ;  and  as  he  ascended  furtlier  from  the 
sea,  he  found  the  banks  steeper  and  higher. 

Thus  Hasdrubal  was  overtaken  by  the  Romans  and 
obliged  to  fight.  It  is  clear  from  Polybius  that  he  had 
encamped  for  the  night  after  his  wearisome  march;  and^ 
retreat  being  fatal  to  the  discipline  of  barbarians,  the 
Gauls  became  unmanageable,  and  indulged  so  freely  in 
drinking,  that,  when  morning  dawned,  many  of  them  were 
lying  drunk  in  their  quarters,  utterly  unable  to  move.  And 
now    the    Roman    army   was   seen   advancing   in    order   of 


156  KEADINGS     IN     KOMAN     HISTORY. 

battle;. and  Hasclrubal,  finding  it  impossible  to  continue  his 
retreat,  marched  out  of  his  camp  to  meet  tliem. 

His  Gaulish  infantry,  as  many  as  were  fit  for  action,  were 
stationed  on  his  left,  in  a  position  naturally  so  strong  as  to 
be  unassailable  in  front ;  and  its  flank  would  probably  be 
covered  by  the  river.  He  himself  took  part  with  his  Spanish 
infantry,  and  attacked  the  left  wing  of  the  Roman  array, 
which  was  commanded  by  Livius  (Nero's  associate  consul). 
Nero  was  ou  the  Eoman  right,  the  prietor  in  the  center. 

Between  Hasdrubal  and  Livius,  the  battle  was  long  and 
obstinately  disputed,  the  elephants  being,  according  to 
Polybius,  an  equal  hindrance  to  both  parties  ;  for,  galled  by 
the  missiles  of  the  Romans,  they  broke  sometimes  into  their 
own  ranks,  as  well  as  into  those  of-  the  enemy.  Meanwhile, 
Nero,  seeing  that  he  could  make  no  progress  on  his  front, 
drew  his  troops  out  of  the  line,  and, passing  round  on  the 
rear  of  the  praitor  and  of  Livius,  fell  upon  the  right  flank 
and  the  rear  of  the  enemy.  Then  the  fate  of  the  day  was 
decided;  and  the  Spaniards,  outnumbered  and  surrounded, 
were  cut  to  pieces  in  their  ranks,  resisting  to  the  last.  Then 
too,  when  all  was  lost,  Hasdrubal  spurred  his  horse  into  the 
midst  of  a  Roman  cohort,  and  there  fell  sword  in  hand, 
fighting,  says  Livy,  "  with  honorable  sympathy,  as  became 
the  son  of  Hamilcar  and  the  brother  of  Hannibal." 

The  conquerors  immediately  stormed  the  Carthaginian 
camp,  and  there  slaughtered  many  of  the  Gauls,  whom  they 
found  still  lying  asleep  in  the  helplessness  of  brute  intoxica- 
tion. The  spoil  of  the  camp  was  rich,  amounting  in  value 
to  300  talents:  of  the  elephants,  six  were  killed  in  the 
action;  the  other  four  were  taken  alive.  All  the  Cartha- 
ginian citizens  who  had  followed  Hasdrubal,  were  cither 
killed  or  taken ;  and  3000  Roman  prisoners,  Avho  were 
found  in  the  camp,  were  restored  to  liberty. 


READI^^CTS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  157 

With  no  less  haste  than  he  had  marched  from  Apuha, 
Nero  hastened  back  thither  to  rejoin  his  army.  All  was 
quiet  there:  Haunibal  still  lay  in  his  camp,  waiting  for 
intelligence  from  Hasdrubal.  He  received  it  too  soon,  not 
.from  Hasdrubal,  but  from  Nero.  The  Carthaginian 
prisoners  were  exhibited  exultiugly  before  his  camp ;  tvv^o 
of  them  were  set  at  liberty,  and  sent  to  tell  him  the  story  of 
their  defeat;  and  a  head  was  thrown  down  in  scorn  before 
his  outposts,  if  his  soldiers  might  know  whose  it  was.  They 
took  it  up,  and  brought  to  Hannibal  the  head  of  his  brother. 
He  had  not  dealt  so  with  the  remains  of  the  Koman 
generals:  but  of  this  Xero  recked  nothing;  he  was  as  in- 
different to  justice  and  humanity  in  his  dealings  with  an 
enemy,  as  his  imperial  descendants  afterward  showed  them- 
selves towards  Rome,  and  all  mankind.* — Arnold. 

An  Atonement,  a  Suspense,  and  a  Thanksgiving. — 
[Before  the  Battle  of  Metaurus.]  The  popular  mind,  tortured 
by  religious  terrors,  now  saw  everywhere  signs  of  the  divine 
anger,  and  it  gave  itself  up  to  horrid  delusions,  and  to  the 
cruelty  of  superstition.  Again  it  rained  stones,  rivers  ran 
blood,  and  temples,  walls,  and  gates  of  towns  were  struck 
by  lightning.  But  more  than  usual  terror  was  caused  by 
the  birth  of  a  greatly  deformed  child.  Soothsayers  were 
specially  sent  for  from  Etruria,  and  at  their  suggestion  the 
wretched  creature  was  placed  in  a  box  and  cast  into  the  sea 
far  from  the  coast.  Then  the  pontitices  ordained  a  grand 
national  festival  of  atonement.  From  the  temple  of  Apollo 
before  the  town,  the  procession  marched  solemnly  to  the 

♦  Ten  yoarn  harl  papfod  sirce  Hiiniiibal  had  lact  sazcfl  on  those  features.  The 
»on«  <:f  Haiiiilc.ir  hml  tl)eii  planiK^d  tlicir  pyslciii  of  warfare  a[;ainst  Rome,  whieli 
Ihey  had  m>  nearly  l)nin^'ht  to  >iiicce>'sftil  accoinpli'^hmi'iit  Year  after  year  liad 
Hannibal  t>een  Hiru'.'tdint;  in  Italy,  in  the  hope  of  one  day  hailing  the  unival  of  liim 
whom  he  had  li-ft  in  S|»ain,  and  of  Hcpinc:  hin  brotherV  eye  fli.-h  with  afl'ection  and 
pride  al  the  jnnetion  of  their  irreni«til)le  hof<tK.  He  now  saw  lint  eve  irlazed  in 
dea'li,  and  in  Itn,-  a'.'nny  of  his  In-art  the  ijreat  Carthaginian  groaned  aloud  that  he* 
ri-co;,Tiiztd  his  couniryV  destiny.— Cbeamy. 


158  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Forum.  At  its  head  walked  two  wliite  cows,  led  by  sacri- 
ficial servants;  behind  them  were  carried  two  statues  of  the 
royal  Juno,  made  of  cypress  wood  ;  then  followed  three 
times  nine  virgins  in  long  flowing  garments,  walking  in  a 
single  line  and  holding  on  to  a  rope,  singing  to  the 
measured  time  of  their  footsteps,  in  honor  of  the  goddess, 
a  hymn,  which  Livius  Andronicus  (p.  83),  had  composed 
for  this  special  occasion.  At  the  end  of  the  procession 
came  the  ten  officers  who  presided  over  sacrificial  rites, 
crowned  with  laurel  and  clothed  in  purple- bordered  togas. 
From  the  Forura  the  procession  went,  after  a  short  pause, 
up  to  tlie  temple  of  Juno  on  the  Aventine.  Here  the  two 
cows  were  sacrificed  by  the  ten  sacrificial  priests,  and  the 
statues  were  put  up  in  the  temple  of  the  goddess. — Ihne. 

[After  the  Battle  of  Metaurus.]  From  the  moment  that 
Nero's  march  from  the  south  had  been  heard  of  at  Eome, 
intense  anxiety  possessed  the  whole  city.  Every  day  the 
senate  sat  from  sunrise  to  sunset,  and  not  a  senator  was 
absent;  every  day  the  forum  was  crowded  from  morning 
till  evening,  for  any  hour  might  bring  some  great  tidings, 
and  every  man  wished  to  be  among  the  first  to  hear  them. 
A  doubtful  rumor  arose,  that  a  great  battle  had  been  fought, 
and  a  great  victory  won  only  two  days  before  :  two  horsemen 
of  Narnia  had  ridden  off  from  the  field  to  carry  the  news  to 
their  home;  it  had  been  heard  and  published  in  the  camp  of  the 
reserve  army,  which  was  lying  at  Namia  to  cover  the  approach 
to  Eome.  But  men  dared  not  lightly  believe  what  they  so 
much  wished  to  be  true :  and  how,  they  said,  could  a  battle 
fought  in  the  extremity  of  TJmbria  be  heard  of  only  two 
days  after  at  Eome  ?  Soon,  however,  it  Avas  known  that 
a  letter  had  arrived  from  L.  Manlius  Acidinus  himself,  who 
commanded  the  army  at  Narnia  :  the  horsemen  had  cer- 
tainly arrived  from  the  field  of  battle,  and  brought  tidings 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  159 

of  a  glorious  victory.  The  letter  was  read  first  in  the 
senate,  and  then  in  the  forum  from  the  rostra  ;  but  some 
still  refused  to  believe:  fugitives  from  a  battle-field  miglit 
carry  idle  tales  of  victory  to  hide  their  own  shame  :  till  the 
account  came  directly  from  the  consuls,  it  was  rash  to  credit 
it.  At  last,  word  was  brought  that  officers  of  high  rank  in 
the  consuls'  army  were  on  their  way  to  Rome  ;  that  they 
bore  a  despatch  from  Livius  and  Nero.  Then  the  whole 
city  poured  out  of  the  walls  to  meet  them,  eager  to  anticipate 
the  moment  which  was  to  confirm  all  their  hopes.  For  two 
miles,  as  far  as  tlie  Milvian  bridge  over  the  Tiber,  the  crowd 
formed  an  uuinterrupted  mass ;  and  when  the  officers 
appeared,  they  could  scarcely  make  their  Avay  to  the  city, 
the  multitude  thronging  around  them,  and  overwhelming 
them  and  their  attendants  with  eager  questions.  As  each 
man  learnt  the  jo^-ful  answers,  he  made  haste  to  tell  them  to 
others:  "The  enemy's  army  is  destroyed;  their  gen- 
eral SLAIN ;  our  own  legions  and  both  the  consuls 
are  safe!"  So  tlie  crowd  re-entered  the  city;  and  the 
three  officers,  all  men  of  noble  names,  still  followed  by  the 
thronging  multitude,  at  last  reached  the  senate-house. 
The  iieo[)lc  pressed  after  them  into  the  senate-house  itself: 
but  even  at  such  a  moment  the  senate  forgot  not  its  accus- 
tomed order;  the  crowd  was  forced  back;  and  the  consuls' 
desjtatch  was  first  read  to  the  senatoj-s  alone.  Immediately 
afterwards  the  officers  came  out  into  the  forum;  there 
L.  Vetnrius  again  road  the  despatch  ;  and  as  its  contents 
were  short,  and  it  told  only  the  general  result  of  the  battle, 
he  himself  related  the  particulars  of  what  he  had  seen  and 
done.  The  interest  of  his  hearers  grew  more  intense  with 
every  word  ;  till  at  last  the  whole  multitude  broke  out  into 
a  universal  cheer,  and  then  rushed  from  the  formii  in  all 
directions  lo  carry  the  news  to  their  wives  and  children  at 


160  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

home,  or  ran  to  the  temple  to  pour  out  their  gratitude  to 
the  gods.  The  senate  ordered  a  thanksgiving  of  three  days; 
the  prffitor  announced  it  in  the  forum  ;  and  for  three  days 
every  temple  was  crowded ;  and  the  Eonian  wives  and 
mothers,  in  tlicir  gayest  dresses,  took  their  children  with 
them,  and  poured  forth  their  thanks  to  all  the  gods  for  this 
great  deliverance.  The  Roman  people  seemed  at  last  to 
breathe  and  move  tit  liberty:  confidence  revived;  and,  in 
the  joy  of  the  moment,  men  almost  forgot  that  their 
great  enemy  with  his  unbroken  army  was  still  in  Italy. — 
Arnold. 

CARTHAG-E. 

The  emperor  Claudius  composed  a  work  on  Carthage  in 
eight  books,  and  to  give  it  every  chance  of  surviving  to  later 
ages,  he  built  a  new  lecture-hall  adjoining  the  museum  at 
Alexandria,  and  provided  an  endowment  for  having  his 
work  read  publicly  every  year.  In  spite,  however,  of  the 
illustrious  position  of  the  writer,  there  is  every  reason  to 
suppose  that  the  "Claudian  Headers  of  Punic  History" 
soon  found  themselves  in  possession  of  a  sinecure.  To  the 
best  of  our  knowledge,  there  is  only  one  allusion  to  these 
readers  in  all  subsequent  time,  and  none  whatever  to  the 
book  they  were  paid  to  read.  It  would  seem  that  with 
nations  as  with  individuals  a  spiritual  vitality  is  the  only 
secret  against  oblivion.  Carthage  occupies  in  history  a 
middle  place  between  the  gigantic  despotisms  of  Mesopotamia 
and  Egypt,  and  the  vigorous  political  organizations  of  the 
Hellenic  and  Italian  peninsulas.  But  it  is  remarkable  that 
this  middle  place  has  been  won  only  by  contact  with  the 
last.  Eome  destroyed  her  rival  and  in  that  act  immortalized 
her. 

Even  in  her  best  davs,  Carthage  was  Avithout  any  litera- 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY,  161 

ture  worthy  the  name.  The  only  Punic  author  known  was 
a  writer  on  agriculture.  Hannibal  wrote  the  history  of  a 
campaign,  but  so  little  did  he  esteem  his  own  language  that 
he  composed  it  in  Greek,  although,  as  Cicero  tells  us,  he 
was  by  no  means  a  master  of  that  fongue.  No  trace  sur- 
vives of  a  Punic  art  or  architecture.  The  iVfrican 
millionaire  was  able  by  his  constant  trading-relations  with 
the  Greeks  of  Sicily  to  ornament  his  house  with  the  works 
of  foreign  artists  to  any  extent.  And  when  Carthage  was 
takan,  its  dwellings  were  full  of  Greek  statues,  and  its 
temples  of  offerings  brought  from  Sicily,  or  Southern  Italy. 
J5ut  Carthage  was  a  commercial  community  absorbed  in  the 
pursuit  of  Avealth.  Consequently,  irrigation,  mining,  and 
navigation,  were  carried  to  a  high  pitch  ;  while  the  com- 
mercial arrangements  necessitated  by  the  extended  inter- 
course of  modern  nations,  were  to  a  considerable  extent 
anticipated  by  the  Carthaginians.  They  alone  of  all  the 
ancient  peoples  possessed  a  conventional  currency.  Their 
^' leaf  Iter  money" — precursor  of  modern  bills  of  exchange; 
and  their  'Uesserce  Jiospitales" — the  "  letters  of  credit "  of 
an  early  age;  as  well  as  their  wide-extended  trading- 
establishments  (factories),  show  that  they  had  two  important 
elements  of  a  commercial  character,  viz. :  enteri)rise  and 
good  faith.  "Fides  Piniica"  may  have  conveyed  far 
different  meanings  to  a  Cornish  tin-miner,  and  a  Eoman 
legionary. 

The  coasts  of  the  Mediterranean  were  so  thickly  strewn 
with  Carthaginian  settlements  that  long  after  Carthage  fell 
the  best  land  along  the  coast  of  Gaul  and  Spain  was  still  in 
the  hands  of  men  of  Punic  blood;  and,  perhaps,  even  at  this 
day  a  harvest  of  Punic  words  could  be  reaped  by  a  compe- 
tent scholar  from  the  local  dialects  of  Malta,  Corsica,  Sar- 
dinia, or,  may  bi-,  from  the  vulgarisms  of  ('adiz,  and  Lisbon. 


1G2  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

But  while  Carthage,  from  her  wide  commerce,  attained  a  ma- 
terial prosperity  so  enormous  that  the  very  spoils  demoral- 
ized her  destroyers,  she  left  no  legacy  to  posterity  by  which 
mankind  has  been  enriched,  except  the  moral  to  be  drawn 
from  her  fate, — that  a  nation  which  has  no  higher  aim  than 
to  get  rich,  is  doomed  not  only  to  certain  destruction,  but  to 
as  certain  oblivion. — Edinburgh  Review, 


CATO    THE    CENSOR. 

Cato  grew  powerful  by  his  eloquence,  so  that  he  was 
commonly  called  the  Roman  Demosthenes  ;  but  hia  man- 
ner of  life  was  yet  more  famous  and  talked  of.  He  him- 
self says  that  he  never  wore  a  suit  of  clothes  which  cost 
more  than  a  hundred  drachmas;  and  that,  when  he  was 
general  and  consul,  he  drank  the  same  wine  which  his  work- 
men did ;  and  that  the  meat  or  fish  which  was  bought  in  the 
meat  market  for  his  dinner,  did  not  cost  above  thirty  asses.* 
All  which  was  for  the  sake  of  tlie  commonwealth,  that  so  his 
body  might  be  the  hardier  for  the  war. 

And  when  he  entered  upon  the  government  of  Sardinia, 
where  his  predecessors  had  been  used  to  require  tents,  bed- 
ding, and  clothes  upon  the  public  account,  and  to  charge  the 
state  heavily  with  the  cost  of  provisions  and  entertainment 
for  a  great  train  of  servants  and  friends,  the  difference  he 
showed  in  his  economy  was  something  incredible.  There  was 
nothing  of  any  sort  for  which  he  put  the  public  to  expense; 
he  would  walk  without  a  carriage  to  visit  the  cities,  Avith 
only  one  common  town-oflfieer,  who  carried  his  dress  and  a 
cup  to  offer  libation  with.  Yet  though  he  seemed  thus  easy 
and  sparing  to  all  who  were  under  his  power,  he,  on  the 

*  The  drachma  was  worth  about  18  cents  ;  the  value  of  the  as  at  this  time  was 
not  far  from  half  a  cent. 


READI^'GS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  163 

other  hand,  showed  most  inflexible  severity  and  strictness  in 
what  related  to  public  Justice,  and  was  rigorous  and  precise 
in  what  concerned,  the  ordinances  of  the  commonwealth  ;  so 
that  the  Roman  government  never  seemed  more  terrible,  nor 
yet  more  mild  than  under  his  administration. 

Ten  years  after  his  consulship,  Cato  stood  for  the  oflace  of 
censor,  which  was  indeed  the  summit  of  all  honor,  and  in  a 
manner  the  highest  step  in  civil  affairs  ;  for  besides  all  other 
power,  it  had  also  that  of  an  inquisition  into  every  one's  life 
and  manners.  For  the  Romans 'thought  that  no  marriage  or 
rearing  of  children,  nay,  no  feast  or  driuking-l)out,  ought  to 
be  permitted  according  to  every  one's  appetite  or  fancy, 
without  being  examined  and  inquired  into  ;  being  of  opinion, 
that  a  man's  character  was  much  sooner  perceived  in  things 
of  this  sort  than  in  what  is  done  publicly  and  in  open  day.* 
They  chose,  therefore,  two  persons,  one  out  of  the  patricians, 
the  other  out  of  the  commons,  who  were  to  watch,  correct, 
and  punish,  if  any  one  ran  too  much  into  voluptuousness  or 
transgressed  the  usual  manner  of  life  in  his  country;  and 
these  were  called  Censors.  They  had  power  to  take  away  a 
horse,  or  expel  out  of  the  senate  any  one  who  lived  intem- 
perately  arid  out  of  ordei-.  It  was  also  their  business  to  take 
an  estimate  of  what  every  one  was  worth,  and  to  put  down 
in  registers  everybody's  birth  and  quality ;  besides  many 
other  prerogatives. 

His  treatment  of  Lucius,  a  brother  of  Scipio,  and  one  who 
had  been  honored  with  a  triumph,  occasioned  some  odium 


♦  The  Romans  with  their  narrow  views  of  life,  tlieir  ruptic  parsimony,  and  their 
military  likinj;  for  coercive  meaciires,  di-lijjhted  in  nieddliiiK  in  the  affairs  of  private 
life,  in  prescribintf  how  many  (lute-players  Klionld  be  allowed  at  a  fiiiier'il.  how 
miieh  filver  jdale  people  should  have  in  their  houses,  what  ornaments  they  might 
exhibit  in  their  dress.  Even  in  the  Twelve  Tallies  there  are  tnices  of  very  niinnto 
regulation"  of  this  kind  ;  and  in  sjiito  of  all  the  teaching  of  experience  and  all  the 
evidence  of  the  useleusness  of  sueh  resirleiions,  ilie  Romans  coniinued  to  hope  that 
Bach  fcarccroWB  would  keep  off  immorality.— Iune. 


164  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

ao-ainst  Cato ;  for  lie  took  liis  horse  from  him,  and  was 
thought  to  do  it  with  a  design  of  putting  an  affront  on 
Scipio  Africnims,  now  dead.  Manilius,  also,  who,  according 
to  the  public  expectation,  would  have  been  next  consul,  he 
threw  out  of  the  senate,  because,  in  the  presence  of  his 
daughter,  and  in  open  day,  he  had  kissed  his  wife.  But  he 
gave  most  general  annoyance,  by  retrenching  people's  luxury; 
for  though  (most  of  the  youth  being  thereby  already 
corrupted)  it  seemed  almost  impossible  to  take  it  away  with 
an  open  hand  and  directly,  yet,  going  as  it  were,  obliquely 
around,  he  caused  all  dress,  carriages,  women's  ornaments, 
and  household  furniture,  whose  price  exceeded  one  thousand 
five  hundred  drachmas,  to  be  rated  at  ten  times  as  much  as 
they  were  worth  ;  intending  by  thus  making  the  assessments 
greater,  to  increase  the  taxes  paid  upon  them.  He  also 
ordained  that  upon  every  thousand  asses  of  property  of  this 
kind,  three  should  be  paid,  so  that  people  burdened  with 
extra  charges,  and  seeing  others  of  as  good  estates,  but  more 
frugal  and  sparing,  paying  less  into  the  public  exchequer, 
might  be  tired  out  of  their  prodigality.  And  thus,  not 
only  those  who  bore  the  taxes  for  the  sake  of  their  luxury, 
were  disgusted  at  Cato,  but  those,  too,  who  on  the  other 
side  laid  by  their  luxury  for  fear  of  the  taxes. 

However,  the  people,  it  seems,  hked  his  censorship 
wondrously  well ;  for,  setting  up  a  statue  for  him  in  the 
temple  of  the  goddess  of  Health,  they  put  an  inscription 
under  it,  not  recording  his  commands  in  war,  or  his  triumph, 
but  to  the  effect,  that  this  was  Cato  the  Censor,  who  by  his 
good  discipline  and  wise  and  temperate  ordinances,  reclaimed 
the  Roman  commonwealth  when  it  was  declining  and  sink- 
ing down  into  vice. — Plutarch. 

The  Debate  of  Cato  the  Censor  and  Lucius  Valerius 
upon  the  Oppian  law  (107  b.o.).— Amid  the  serious  con- 


READINGS      IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  1G5 

cerus  of  important  Avars,  iin  incident  intervened,  trivial  to  be 
mentioned,  but  which,  through  the  zeal  of  the  parties  con- 
cerned, issued  in  a  violent  contest.  Marcus  Fundanius  and 
Lucius  Valerius,  plebeian  tribunes,  proposed  to  the  people 
the  repealing  of  the  Oppian  law.  This  law,  which  had  been 
introduced  by  Caius  Oppias,  during  the  heat  of  the  Punic 
war,  enacted  that  "no  woman  should  possess  more  than 
half  an  ounce  of  gold,  or  wear  a  garment  of  various  colors, 
or  ride  in  a  carriage  drawn  by  horses,  in  a  city,  or  any 
town,  or  any  place  nearer  thereto  than  one  mile ;  except  on 
occasion  of  some  public  religious  solemnity."  Marcus  and 
Publius  Junius  Brutus,  plebeian  tribunes,  supported  the 
Oppian  law,  and  declared,  that  they  would  never  suffer  it  to 
be  repealed;  while  many  of  the  nobility  stood  forth  to  argue 
for  and  against  the  motion  proposed.  The  Capitol  was 
filled  with  crowds,  who  favored,  or  opposed  the  law;  nor 
could  the  matrons  be  kept  at  home,  either  by  advice,  or 
shame,  nor  even  by  tlie  commands  of  their  husbands ;  but 
beset  every  street  and  pass  in  the  city,  l)eseeching  the  men 
as  they  went  down  to  the  forum,  that  in  the  present 
flourishing  state  of  the  commonwealth,  when  the  private 
fortune  of  all  was  daily  increasing,  they  would  suii'er  the 
women  to  have  their  former  ornaments  of  dress  restored,. 
This  throng  of  women  increased  daily,  for  they  arrived  even 
from  the  country  towns  and  villages ;  and  they  had  at 
length  the  boldness  to  come  up  to  the  consuls,  praetors,  and 
magistrates,  to  urge  their  request.  One.  of  the  consuls, 
however,  they  found  especially  inexorable — Marcus  Porcius 
Cato,  who  spoke  to  this  effect: — 

"If,  HoniMn.-;,  every  individual  among  us  had  made  it  a 
rule  to  niuiutain  the  ])rerogative  and  authority  of  a  husband 
with  respect  to  his  own  wife,  we  should  luive  less  trouble 
with  the  whole  sex.     But  now,  our  [nivilcuc-',  overixjwered 


1G6  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

at  home  by  female  contumacy,  are,  even  here  in  the  forum, 
spurned  and  trodden  under  foot ;  and  because  we  are  unable 
to  withstand  each  separately,  we  now  dread  their  collective 
body.  It  was  not  without  painful  emotions  of  shame  that 
I  just  now  made  my  way  into  the  forum  through  the  midst 
of  a  band  of  women.  Had  I  not  been  restrained  by  respect 
for  the  modesty  and  dignity  of  some  individuals  among 
them,  rather  than  of  the  whole  number,  and  been  unwilling 
that  they  should  be  seen  rebuked  by  a  consul,  I  should  have 
said  to  them,  '  What  sort  of  practice  is  this,  of  running  out 
into  public,  besetting  the  streets  and  addressing  other  women's 
husbands  ?  Could  not  each  have  made  the  same  request 
toiler  husband  at  home?  Are  your  blandishments  more 
seducing  in  public  than  in  private ;  and  with  other  women's 
husbands,  than  with  your  own  ?  Although,  if  the  modesty 
of  matrons  confined  them  within  the  limits  of  their  own 
rights,  it  does  not  become  you,  even  at  home,  to  concern 
yourselves  about  what  laws  may  be  passed,  or  repealed  here.' 
Our  ancestors  thought  it  not  proper  that  women  should 
perform  any,  even  private  business,  without  a  director ;  but 
that  they  should  be  always  under  the  control  of  parents, 
brothers,  or  husbands.  Now,  it  seems,  we  suffer  them  to 
interfere  in  the  management  of  state  affairs,  and  to  intro- 
duce themselves  into  the  forum,  into  general  assemblies,  and 
into  assemblies  of  election.  For  what  are  they  doing,  at  this 
moment,  in  your  streets  and  lanes  ?  What,  but  arguing : 
some  in  support  of  the  motion  of  the  plebeian  tribunes ; 
others,  for  the  repeal  of  the  law  ?  Will  you  give  the  reins 
to  their  intractable  nature,  and  then  expect  that  themselves 
should  set  bounds  to  their  licentiousness,  when  you  have 
failed  to  do  so  ?  What  will  they  not  attempt,  if  they  now 
come  off  victorious  ? 

"Recollect  all  the  institutions  respecting  the  sex,  by  which 


HEADINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  1G7 

our  fore|athcrs  restrained  their  iiiidne  freedouij  and  snbjected 
them  to  their  husbauds;  and  yet,  even  with  the  help  of  all 
these  restrictions,  you  can  scarcely  keep  them  within  bounds. 
If,  then,  you  suffer  them  to  throw  these  off  one  by  one,  to 
tear  them  all  asunder,  and,  at  last,  to  be  set  on  an  equal 
footing  with  yourselves,  can  you  imagine  that  they  will  be 
any  longer  tolerable?  The  moment  they  have  arrived  at  an 
equality  witli  you,   they  will  have  become  your  superiors. 

I  should  like,  however,  to  hear  what  this  important 

affair  is  which  has  induced  the  matrons  thus  to  run  out  into 
public  in  this  excited  manner,  scarcely  restraining  from  push- 
ing into  the  forum  and  the  assembly  of  the  people.  Is  it  to 
solicit  that  their  parents,  their  husbands,  children,  and 
brothers,  may  be  ransomed  from  captivity  under  Hannibal  ? 
By  no  means:  and  far  be  ever  from  the  commonwealth  so 
unfortunate  a  situation.  Yet,  even  when  such  was  the  case, 
you  refused  this,  to  their  prayers.  What  motive,  that  even 
common  decency  wnll  allow  to  be  mentioned,  is  pretended  for 
this  female  insurrection?  Whf/,  say  they,  that  ice  may  shine 
in  gold  and  purple  ;  that,  both  on  festal  and  common  days, 
we  may  ride  through  the  city  in  our  chariots,  triumphing  over 
vanquished  and  al)rogaled  law,  after  having  captured  and 
wrested  from  you  your  suffrages ;  and  that  there  may  he  no 
hounds  to  our  expenses  and  our  luxury  ! 

"  Often  have  you  heard  me  complain  of  the  profuse  expenses 
of  the  women — often  of  tho.^e  of  the  men  ;  and  that  not  only 
of  men  in  private  stations,  but  of  the  magistrates:  and  that 
the  state  was  endangered  by  two  oi)posite  vice.-:,  luxury  and 
avarice  ;  those  pests,  which  have  been  the  ruin  of  all  great 
emjtircs.  These  do  I  dread  the  more,  as  the  circumsfanccs 
of  the  commonwealth  grow  daily  more  pros])erous  and  happy; 
a.s  the  empire  increases;  as  we  have  now  passed  over  into 
Greece  and   Asia, — places  abounding  with   every  kind   of 


1G8  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

temptiitiou  tli.at  can  inflame  the  passions;  and  as  wo  have 
begun  to  handle  even  royal  treasures :  so  much  the  more  do 
I  fear  that  these  matters  will  bring  us  into  captivity,  rather 
than  we  them.  Believe  me,  those  statues  from  Syracuse 
were  l)rouglit  into  this  city  with  hostile  effect.  I  already 
hear  too  many  commending  and  admiring  the  decorations  of 
Athens  and  Corinth,  and  ridiculing  the  earthen  images  of  our 
Roman  gods  that  stand  on  the  fronts  of  their  temples.  For 
my  part,  I  prefer  these  gods, — propitious  as  they  are,  and  as 
I  hope  will  continue  to  be,  if  we  allow  them  to  remain  in 
their  own  mansions.  Within  the  memory  of  our  fathers, 
Pyrrhus,  by  his  ambassador,  Cineas,  made  trial  of  the  dispo- 
sitions, not  only  of  our  men  but  of  our  women  also,  by  offers 
of  presents.  At  that  time  the  Oppian  law  had  not  been 
made ;  and  yet  not  one  woman  accepted  a  present.  If  Cineas 
were  now  to  go  round  the  city  with  his  presents,  he  would 
find  numbers  of  women  standing  in  the  public  streets  to  i-e- 

ceive    them Of  all    kinds  of    shame,    the   worst, 

surely,  is  the  being  ashamed  of  frugality  or  of  poverty;  but 
the  law  relieves  you  with  regard  to  both;  since  that  which 
you  have  not  it  is  unlawful  for  you  to  possess.  '  This  equali- 
zation,' says  the  rich  matron,  'is  the  very  thing  that  I  can- 
not endure.  Why  do  not  I  make  a  figure,  distinguished  with 
gold  and  purple  ?  Why  is  the  poverty  of  others  concealed 
under  this  cover  of  a  law,  so  that  it  should  be  thought  that, 
if  the  law  permitted,  they  would  have  such  things  as  they 
are  not  now  able  to  procure  ?'  Komansl  do  you  wish  to  ex- 
cite among  your  wives  an  emulation  of  this  sort  ?  As 

soon  as  the  law  shall  cease  to  limit  the  expenses  of  your  wife, 
you  yourself  will  never  be  able  to  do  so.  Do  not  suppose 
that  the  matter  will  hereafter  be  in  the  same  state  in  which 
it  was  before  this  law  was  made.  It  is  safer  that  a  wicked 
man  should  never  be  accused,  than  that  he  should  be  acquit- 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  1G9 

ted;  and  luxury,  if  it  had  never  been  meddled  with,  would 
be  more  tolerable  than  it  will  be,  now,  like  a  wild  beast, 
iiTitated  by  having  been  chained,  and  then  let  loose.  My 
opinion  is,  that  the  Oppian  law  ought,  on  no  account,  to  be 
.  repealed.  Whatever  determination  you  may  come  to,  I  pray 
all  the  gods  to  prosper  it." 

Then    Lucius  Valerius  spoke  in  support  of  the 

measure  he  had  himself  introduced : — 

" If  this  law  had  been  passed  for  the  purpose  of 

setting  a  limit  to  the  passions  of  the  sex,  there  would  be 
reason  to  fear  lest  the  repeal  of  it  might  operate  as  an 
excitement  to  them.  But  the  real  reason  of  its  being 
passed,  the  time  itself  will  show.  Hannibal  was  then  in 
Italy,  victorious  at  Cann^fi:  he  already  held  possession  of 
Tarentum,  of  Arpi,  of  Caj^ua,  and  seemed  ready  to 
bring  up  his  army  to  the  city  of  Rome.  Our  allies  had 
deserted  us.  We  had  neither  soldiers  to  fdl  up  the  legions, 
nor  seamen  to  man  the  fleet,  nor  money  in  the  treasury. 
Slaves  Avho  were  to  be  employed  as  S(jldiers,  were  purchased 
on  condition  of  their  price  being  paid  to  the  owners  at  the 
cud  (jfthe  war.  The  farmers  of  the  revcuues  had  declared 
that  they  would  contract  to  supply  grain  and  other  matters 
wliich  the  exigencies  of  the  war  required,  to  be  paid  for  at 
the  same  time.  We  gave  up  our  slaves  to  the  oar,  in  num- 
bers proportioned  to  our  i)roperties,  and  paid  them  out  of 
our  own  incomes.  All  our  gold  and  silver  we  dedicated  to 
the  use  of  the  puldic.  Widows  and  minors  lodged  their 
money  in  the  treasury.  It  was  provided  by  law  that  we 
should  not  keep  in  our  houses  more  than  a  certain  quantity 
of  wrought  gold  or  silver,  or  more  than  a  certain  sum  of 
coined  silver  or  Itrass.  At  such  a  lime  as  this,  were  the 
matrons  so  eagerly  cngni^a'd  in  hixnry  and  dress,  that  the 
Oppian  law  was  recpiisilo  to  rei)ress  such  practices  ? 


170  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Shall  we  men  wear  the  purple  bordered  gown  in  magistracies 
and  priests'  offices  ?  Shall  our  children  wear  gowns  bor- 
dered with  purple?  Shall  we  allow  the  j^rivilege  of  Avearing 
the  toga  praetexta  to  the  magistrates  of  the  colonies  and 
borough  towns,  and  to  the  very  lowest  of  them  here  at 
Eome,  even  to  the  superintendents  of  the  streets ;  and  shall 

we   interdict   the  use  of  purple   to  women  alone  ? 

Elegance  of  appearance,  and  ornaments,  and  dress,  these  are 
women's  badges  of  distinction;  in  these  they  delight   and 

gloi'y ;  these  our  ancestors  called  the  woman's  world " 

Although  all  these  considerations  had  been  urged  against 
the  motion  and  in  its  favor,  the  women  next  day  poured  out 
into  the  public  in  much  greater  numbers,  and  in  a  body 
beset  the  doors  of  the  tribunes  who  liad  protested  against 
the  measure  of  their  colleagues;  nor  did  they  retire  until 
this  intervention  was  withdrawn.  Thus  was  this  law  an- 
nulled, in  the  twentieth  year  after  it  had  been  made.— Livy. 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  171 


PERIOD     OF    THE     CIVIL    WAKS. 

ROME    AT    THE    OPENING    OF    THE    CIVIL 
WARS. 

The  New  Nobility. — While  Eome  was  thus  acquiring 
the  dominion  of  the  civihzed  world,  her  internal  state  was 
marked  by  the  decay  of  the  old  Roman  virtues,  the  dissolu- 
tion of  the  bonds  of  her  old  constitution,  and  the  beginning 
of  new  troubles  that  were  to  end  only  with  the  fall  of  the 
Republic.  The  old  distinction  of  patricians,  clients,  and 
plebeians  had  vanished.  With  the  admission  of  the 
plebeians  to  the  higher  magistracies,  the  increasing  power  of 
wealth  to  influence  elections,  and  the  custom  of  admitting 
those  who  had  held  the  offices  of  state  to  the  Senate,  a  new 
nobility  had  arisen,  under  the  names  of  the  Optiraates,  and 
a  rabble,  misnamed  plebeian,  had  grown  up  by  their  side. 
The  nobility  were  in  possession  of  the  Senate,  whose  initia^ 
*tive  in  legislation  had  grown  into  the  dominant  power  in 
the  state  ;  and  the  old  equality  of  the  Roman  citizens  was 
publicly  annulled  l)y  the  innovation  carried  by  the  elder 
Africanus,  in  his  second  consulship  (B.C.  194),  of  assigning 
the  front  seats  in  the  theater  to  the  senatorial  order.  The 
curule  offices,  and  consequently  the  senate,  became  more 
and  more  the  virtual  inheritance  of  a  few  great  houses,  and 
the  entrance  of  a  "new  man"  into  the  well-fenced  circle 
was  regarded  as  an  usur])ation,  unless  he  had  some  close 
personal  tie  with  the  noble  families. 

Public  Improvements. — Meanwhile,  the  growth  of  the 
empire  itself  alisorbod  a  largL^  proi)ortiou  of  the  new  reve- 
nues in  roads,  bridges,  a(|ueducts,  and  those  other  works 
which  tiie  Romans  never  performed  negligently,  besides  the 


172  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

expenses  of  civil  admiaistration.  Large  sums  were  ex- 
pended in  perfecting  the  system  of  roads  in  Italy  itself;  and 
the  public  works  in  the  capital  and  its  neighborhood  formed 
some  of  the  best  uses  of  the  public  wealth.  The  construc- 
tion of  the  great  system  of  sewers  which  ramified  beneath 
the  city  from  the  Cloaca  Maxima,*  appears  to  have  been 
contracted  for  in  b.  c.  180,  Six  years  later,  the  streets  of 
Eome  were  paved. 

In  B.  c.  160,  the  Pomptine  marshes  were  drained;  and 
P.  Scipio  Nasica,  in  his  consulship  in  the  following  year,  set 
up  a  public  clepsydra,  or  water-clock,  the  city  of  Eome  hav- 
ing gone  on  for  six  centuries  without  any  accurate  means  of 
knowing  the  time  by  night  as  well  as  day.  But  the  most 
magnificent  work  of  this  period  was  the  great  aqueduct  con- 
structed under  the  direction  of  the  Senate,  in  b.  c.  144. 
Eome  had  hitherto  been  supplied  with  water  by  only  two  of 
the  fourteen  aqueducts  which  spanned  the  Campagna  with 
their  long  line  of  arches,  and  of  Avhich  three  still  suffice  to 
bring  into  the  city  a  pure  and  copious  stream  that  puts  our^ 
boasted  sanitary  science  to  shame. — Philip  Smith. 

THE    GRACCHI. 

Tiberius  and  Caius  Gracchus  (p.  51)  were  the  sons  of 
Tiberius  Gracchus,  who,  though  he  had  been  once  censor,  twice 
consul,  and  twice  had  triumphed,  yet  was  more  renowned  and 

*  This  immense  Sewer,  constructed  by  Tarquin  (p.  18)  to  drain  the  marshy 
hollows  between  the  hiils,  and  which  astonished  the  Augustan  age  in  that  its 
massive  structure  had  resisted  time,  earthquakes,  and  inundations  for  600  years, 
BtiU  remains  "with  scarcely  a  stone  displaced."  The  cleanliness  and  perfect 
ventilation  of  these  ancient  watercourses  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  the 
public-spirited  sedile  Agrippa  (son-in-law  to  Augustus  Caesar  and  erector  of  many 
splendid  buildings,  including  the  Pan thf'or)  is  said  to  have  sailed  through  them  to 
the  Tiber  in  his  barge.  "An  idea  of  their  vastness  may  be  obtained,"  says  Story, 
"  from  the  fact  that  the  mere  cleansing  of  them  was  on  one  occasion  contracted  for 
at  no  less  a  sum  than  3000  talents  "  (about  $3,000,000).— E.  B.  S. 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  173 

esteemed  for  his  virtue  tlian  his  honors.  Upon  this  account, 
after  the  death  of  Scipio  who  ov<?rthrew  Hannibal,  he  was 
thought  worthy  to  match  with  his  daughter  Cornelia,  though 
there  had  been  no  friendship  or  familiarity  between  Scipio 
and  him,  but  rather  the  contrary.  There  is  a  story  told, 
that  he  once  found  in  his  bedchamber  a  couple  of  snakes, 
and  that  the  soothsayers,  being  consulted  concerning  the 
prodigy,  advised  that  he  should  neither  kill  them  both 
nor  let  them  both  escape ;  adding,  that  if  the  male  serpent 
was  killed,  Tiberius  should  die,  and  if  the  female,  Cornelia. 
And  that,  tlierefore,  Tiberius,  who  extremely  loved  his  wife 
and  thought,  besides,  that  it  w^as  much  more  his  part,  who 
was  an  old  man,  to  die,  than  it  was  hers,  who  as  yet  was  but 
a  young  woman,  killed  the  male  serpent,  and  let  the  female 
escape;  and,  soon  after,  himself  died,  leaving  behind  him 
twelve  children  borne  to  him  by  Cornelia. 

Cornelia,  taking  upon  herself  all  the  care  of  the  household 
and  the  education  of  her  children,  approved  herself  so  dis- 
creet a  matron,  so  affectionate  a  mother,  and  so  constant  and 
noble-spirited  a  widow,  that  Tiberius  seemed  to  all  men  to 
have  done  nothing  unreasonable,  in  choosing  to  die  for  such 
a  woman  ;  who,  when  king  Ptolemy  himself  proffered  lier  his 
crown,  and  would  have  married  her,  refused  it,  and  cliose 
rather  to  live  a  widow.  In  this  state  she  continued,  and  lost 
all  her  children,  except  one  daughter,  who  was  married  to 
Scipio  the  younger,  and  two  sons,  Tiberius  and  Caius,  whose 
lives  we  are  now  writing. 

These  she  brought  up  with  such  care,  that  though  they 
were  without  dispute  in  natural  endowments  and  dispositions 
the  first  among  the  Romans  of  tiieir  time,  yet  they  seemed  to 
owe  their  virtues  even  more  to  tlieir  education  than  to  their 
birth.  And  as,  in  t  he  statues  and  pictures  made  of  Castor  and 
Pollux,  though  the  brothers  reseml)le   each  olher,  yet  there 


174  READINGS     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

IS  a  difference  to  be  perceived  in  their  countenances,  between 
the  one,  who  dehghted  in  the  cestus,  and  the  other,  that 
was  famous  in  tlie  course,  so  between  these  two  noble  youths, 
though  there  was  a  strong  general  likeness  in  their  common 
love  of  fortitude  and  temperance,  in  their  liberality,  their 
eloquence,  and  their  greatness  of  mind,  yet  in  their  actions 
and  administrations  of  public  affairs,  a  considerable  variation 
showed  itself.  It  will  not  be  amiss,  before  we  proceed,  to 
mark  the  difference  between  them. 

Tiberius,  in  the  form  and  expression  of  his  countenance, 
and  in  his  gesture  and  motion,  was  gentle  and  composed; 
but  Caius,  earnest  and  vehement.  And  so  in  their  public 
speeches  to  the  people,  the  one  spoke  in  a  quiet,  orderly 
manner,  standing  throughout  on  the  same  si)ot ;  the  other 
would  walk  about  on  the  hustings,  and  in  tbe  heat  of  his 
orations  pull  his  gown  off  his  shoulders,  and  was  the  first  of 
all  the  Eomans  that  used  such  gestures.  Cains'  oratory 
was  impetuous  and  passionate,  making  everything  tell  to  the 
utmost ;  wiiereas  Tiberius  was  gentle,  rather,  and  persuasive, 
awakening  emotions  of  pity.  His  diction  Avas  pure,  and 
carefully  correct,  while  that  of  Caius  was  vehement  and  rich. 

The  same  difference  that  appeared  in  their  diction,  was 
observable  also  in  their  tempers.  The  one  was  mild  and 
reasonable,  the  other  rough  and  passionate,  and  to  that 
degree,  that  often,  in  the  midst  of  speaking,  he  was  so  har- 
ried away  by  his  passion  against  his  judgment,  that  his  voice 
lost  its  tone,  and  he  began  to  pass  into  mere  abusive  talking, 
spoiling  his  whole  speech.  As  a  remedy  to  this  excess,  he 
made  use  of  an  ingenious  servant  of  his,  one  Licinius,  who 
stood  constantly  behind  him  with  a  sort  of  i:)itch2)ipe,  or 
instrument  to  regulate  the  voice  by,  and  whenever  he  per- 
ceived his  master's  tone  alter  and  break  with  anger,  he 
struck  a  soft  note  with  his  pipe,  on  heaiing  which,  Caius 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  175 

immediately  checked  the  vehemeuce  of  his  pussion  and  his 
voice,  grew  quieter,  aiid  allowed  himself  to  be  recalled  to 
temper.  Such  are  the  differences  between  the  two  brothers; 
but  their  valor  in  war  against  their  country's  enemies,  their 
justice  in  the  government  of  its  subjects,  their  care  and  in- 
dustry in  office,  and  their  self-command  in.  all  that  regarded 
their  i)leasure3  were  equally  remarkable  in  both. 

Tiberius  was  the  elder  by  nine  years;  owing  to  which  their 
actions  as  public  men  were  divided  by  the  difference  of  the 
times  in  which  those  of  the  one  and  those  of  the  other  were 
performed.  And  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  the  failure 
of  their  enterprises  was  this  interval  between  their  careers, 
and  the  want  of  combination  of  their  efforts.  The  power 
they  would  have  exercised,  had  they  flourished  both  together, 
could  scarcely  have  failed  to  overcome  all  resistance. — 
Plutarch. 

MARIUS    AND    SULLA. 

"  The  mother  of  the  Gracchi  cast  the  dust  of  her  murdered 
sons  into  the  air.  and  out  of  it  sprung  Caius   Marius." — 

MiRABKAU. 

The  father  of  Marius  was  a  day  laborer,  and  ho  himself 
served  in  the  ranks  in  Spain.  Soon  made  an  officer,  Marius 
won  Scipio's  favor  as  a  brave,  frugal,  incorruptible  and  trusty 
soldier.  On  coming  home,  he  was  lucky  enough  to  marry 
the  aunt  of  Julius  Cassar,  whose  high  birth  and  wealth 
opened  the  door  to  state  honors,  which  to  a  man  of  his  origin 
was  at  this  time  virtually  closed.  In  119  b.  c.  he  was  tribune, 
and  had  won  the  reputation  of  an  upright  and  patriotic 
politiciiin,  who  would  truckle  neither  to  the  nobles  nor  the 
mob.  Jn  11.0  he  gained  the  pnetorship,  and  in  Spain  the 
next  year  he  showed  his  usual  vigor  in  putting  down  brig- 
andage.    With  the  soldiers  ho  was  as  jjopular  as  Xev  was 


176  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HTSTOUY. 

with  Napoleon's  armies,  for  he  was  one  of  them,  rough- 
spoken  as  they  were,  fond  of  a  cup  of  wine,  and  never  scorn- 
ing to  share  their  toils.  While  he  was  with  Metellus  at 
Utica,  a  soothsayer  propliesied  that  the  gods  had  great  things 
in  store  for  him,  and  he  asked  Metellus  for  leave  to  go  to 
Eome  and  stand  for  the  consulship.  Metellus  replied  that 
when  his  own  son  stood  for  it,  would  he  time  enough  for 
Marius.  The  man  at  whom  he  sneered  resented  sneers.  He 
at  once  set  to  work  to  undermine  the  credit  of  his  com- 
mander with  the  army,  the  Roman  merchants,  and  Gauda, 
saying,  that  he  himself  would  soon  bring  the  war  to  an  end 
if  he  were  general.  Gauda  and  the  rest  wrote  to  Rome, 
urging  that  Marius  should  have  the  army.  Metellus,  with 
the  worst  grace,  let  him  go  just  twelve  days  before  election. 
But  the  favorite  of  the  gods  had  a  fair  wind,  and  traveled 
night  and  day.  The  artisans  of  the  city  and  the  country 
class  from  which  he  sprang  thronged  to  hear  him  abuse 
Metellus,  and  boast  how  soon  he  would  capture  or  kill  Ju- 
gurtha,  and  he  was  triumphantly  elected  consul  for  the  year 
107.  But  already  there  were  drops  of  bitterness  in  the  sweet 
cup  of  success.  It  was  Metellus  who  was  called  Numidicus, 
not  he,  and  it  was  Sulla  (p.  53)  whose  dare-devil  knavery  had 
entrapped  the  king.  Marius  fumed  at  the  credit  gained  by 
these  aristocrats;  and  when  there  was  dedicated  on  the 
Capitol  a  representation  of  Sulla  receiving  Jugurtha's  sur- 
render, he  could  not  conceal  his  wrath. 

Sulla  was  the  very  antipodes  of  Marius  in  every  thing 
except  bravery,  good  generalship,  and  faith  in  his  star.  He 
was  an  aristocrat.  He  was  dissolute.  He  was  an  admirer 
of  Hellenic  literature.  War  was  not  his  all  in  all  as  a 
profession.  If  he  had  a  lion's  courage,  the  fox  in  him  was 
even  more  to  be  feared.  He,  like  Marius,  owed  his  rise 
partly  to  a  woman,  but,  characteristically,  to  a  mistress,  not 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN      HISTORY.  177 

a  wife.  If  the  boorish  nature  of  the  one  degenerated  with 
age  into  bloodthirsty  brutality,  the  other  was  from  the  first 
cynically  destitute  of  feeling.  He  would  send  men  to  death 
with  a  jest,  and  the  coldblooded,  calculating,  remorseless 
infamy  of  his  entire  career  excites  a  repulsion  which  we  feel 
for  no  other  great  figure  in  history.  Sulla's  whole  soul  must 
have  recoiled  from  the  coarse  manners  of  the  man  under 
whom  he  first  won  distinction,  and,  as  he  saw  him  gradually 
floundering  into  villainy,  have  felt  the  supreme  superiority 
of  a  natural  genius  for  vice. — Beesly. 

JULIUS    C^SAR. 

The  Man. — In  person,  Caesar  (p.  58)  was  tall  and  slight. 
His  features  were  more  refined  than  was  usual  in  Roman 
faces  ;  the  forehead  was  wide  and  high,  the  nose  large 
and  thin,  the  lips  full,  the  eyes  dark  gray  like  an  eagle's, 
the  neck  extremely  thick  and  sinewy.  His  complexion 
was  pale.  His  beard  and  mustache  were  kei)t  carefully 
shaved.  His  hair  was  short  and  naturally  scanty,  falling 
off  toward  the  end  of  his  life  and  leaving  him  partially 
bald.  His  voice,  especially  when  he  sj)oke  in  public,  was 
high  and  shrill.  His  health  was  uniformly  strong  until  his 
last  year,  when  he  became  subject  to  epileptic  tits.  He  was 
a  great  bather,  and  scrupulously  clean  in  all  his  habits, 
abstemious  in  his  food,  and  careless  in  what  it  consisted, 
rarely  or  never  touching  wine,  and  noting  sobriety  as  the 
highest  of  (pialities  when  describing  any  new  people.  He 
was  an  atlilete  in  early  life,  admirable  in  all  manly  exercises, 
and  especially  in  riding.  In  (ianl,  as  has  already  been  said, 
h(!  rode  a  remarkable  horse,  which  he  had  bred  himself,  and 
which  would  let  no  one  but  Cffisar  mount  him.  From  his 
boyhood  it  was  observed  of  him  that  he  was  the  truest  of 


178  READINGS     IN     ROMAN"     HISTORY. 

friends,  that  he  avoided  quarrels,  and  Avas  most  easily 
appeased  when  offended.  In  manner  he  was  quiet  and 
gentlemanlike,  with  the  natural  courtesy  of  high-breeding.* 

The  Soldier. — It  was  by  accident  that  Ctesar  took  up  the 
profession  of  a  soldier ;  yet  perhaps  no  commander  who 
ever  lived  showed  gi'eater  military  genius.  The  conquest  of 
Gaul  was  effected  by  a  force  uhmerically  insignificant  whicli 
was  worked  with  the  precision  of  a  machine.  The  variety 
of  uses  to  which  it  Avas  capable  of  being  turned  implied,  in 
the  first  place,  extraordinary  forethought  in  the  selection  of 
materials.  Men  whose  nominal  duty  was  merely  to  fight, 
were  engineers,  architects,  and  mechanics  of  the  highest 
order.  In  a  few  hours  they  could  extemporize  an  impreg- 
nable fortress  on  an  open  hillside.  They  bridged  the  Rhine 
in  a  week.  They  built  a  fleet  in  a  month.  The  legions  at 
Alesia  held  twice  their  number  pinned  within  tlieir  works, 
wliile  they  kept  at  bay  the  whole  force  of  insurgent  Gaul, 
entirely  by  scientific  superiority.  The  machine,  which  was 
thus  perfect,  was  composed  of  human  l)eings  who  required 
supplies  of  tools,  and  arms,  and  clothes,  and  food,  and 
shelter ;  and  for  all  these  it  depended  on  the  forethought  of 
its  commander.  Maps  there  wore  none.  Countries  entirely 
unknown  had  to  be  surveyed;  routes  had  to  be  laid  out ;  the 
depths  and  courses  of  rivers,  and  the  character  of  mountain 

passes,  had  all  to  bo  ascertained Ca?sar's  greatest 

eucccsses  were  due  to  the  rapidity  of  his  movements,  which 
brought  him  on  the  enemy  before  they  heard  of  his  approach. 
He  traveled  sometimes  a  hundred  miles  a  day,  reading  or 
writing  in  his  carriage,  through   countries  without  roads, 

♦  Once  when  he  was  dininnr  somewhere  the  other  gnests  foinid  the  oil  too  rancid 
for  them.  Caesar  took  it  without  a  remark,  to  eparc  his  entertainer's  feelings. 
When  on  a  journey  throush  a  forest  with  his  friend  Onpiu^.  he  came  one  nijrht  to 
a  hnt  where  there  was  n  single  bad.  Oppios  being  unwell,  Caesar  gave  it  up  to  him, 
and  slept  on  the  ground. 


K  E  A  D  I  X  <i  S     1  X      ROMAN     HISTORY.  1 T9 

and  crossing  rivers  without  bridges.  Xo  obstacles  stopped 
him  when  he  had  a  definite  end  in  view.  In  battle  he 
sometimes  rode  ;  but  he  Avas  more  often  on  foot,  bareheaded, 
and  in  a  conspicuous  dress,  that  he  might  be  seen  and 
recognized.  Again  and  again,  by  his  own  efforts,  he  recovered 
a  day  that  was  half  lust.  He  once  seized  a  panic-stricken 
standard-bearer,  turned  hnn  round,  and  told  him  that  he 
had  mistaken  the  direction  of  the  enemy.  He  never  misled 
his  army  as  to  an  enemy's  strength,  or  if  he  mis-stated  their 
numbers  it  was  only  to  exaggerate.  In  Africa,  before 
Thapsus,  when  his  officers  were  nervous  at  the  reported 
approach  of  Juba,  he  called  tliem  together  and  said  briefly, 
"  You  will  understand  that  within  a  day,  King  Juba  will  be 
here  with  tlie  legions,  thirty  thousand  horse,  a  hundred 
thousand  skirmishers,  and  three  hundred  elephants.  You 
are  not  to  think  or  ask  questions.  I  tell  you  the  truth,  and 
you  must  prepare  for  it.  If  any  of  you  arc  alarmed,  I  shall 
send  you  home." 

Yet  he  was  singularly  careful  of  his  soldiers.  He  allowed 
his  legions  rest,  though  lie  allowed  none  to  himself.  He 
rarely  fought  a  battle  at  a  disadvantage.  He  never  exposed 
his  men  to  unnecessary  danger.  "When  a  gallant  action  was 
performed,  he  knew  by  whom  it  had  been  done,  and  every 
Eoldier,  however  humble,  might  feel  assured  that  if  he 
deserved  praise  he  would  have  it.  And  thus  no  general  was 
ever  more  loved  by,  or  had  greater  power  over,  the  army 
which  served  under  him. 

The  Orator  and  Author.— yiost  of  Caesar's  writings  are 
lost ;  but  there  remain  seven  books  of  commentaries  on  tho 
wars  in  Gaul  (the  eighth  was  added  by  another  hand),  and 
three  books  upon  the  civil  war,  containing  an  account  of  its 
causes  and  history.  Of  these  it  was  that  Cicero  said,  that 
"fools  might  think  to  improve  on  them,  but  that  no  wise 


180  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

man  ^YOuld  try  it."  In  his  composition,  as  in  his  actions, 
CiBsar  is  entirely  simple.  He  indulges  in  no  images,  no 
labored  descriptions,  no  conventional  reflections.  The  coarse 
invectives  which  Cicero  poured  so  freely  upon  those  who  dif- 
fered from  him  are  conspicuously  absent.  The  facts  are  left 
to  tell  their  own  story.  About  himself  and  his  own  exploits 
there  is  not  one  word  of  self-complacency  or  self-admiration. 
He  wrote  with  extreme  rapidity  in  the  intervals  of  other 
labor;  yet  there  is  not  a  word  misplaced,  not  a  sign  of  haste 
anywhere.  The  Commentaries  (in  which  he  usually  speaks 
of  himself  as  CcBsar),  as  a  historical  narrative,  are  as  far 
superior  to  any  other  Latin  composition  as  the  person  of 
Csesar  himself  stands  out  among  the  rest  of  his  contempora- 
ries. His  other  compositions  have  perished.  There  was  a  book 
on  the  Auspices,  which,  coming  from  the  head  of  the  Roman 
religion,  would  have  thrown  a  light  much  to  be  desired  on 
this  curious  subject.  In  practice,  Caesar  treated  the  auguries 
Avith  contempt.  He  carried  his  laws  in  open  disregard  of 
them.  He  fought  his  battles  careless  whether  the  sacred 
chickens  would  eat  or  the  calves'  livers  were  of  the  proper 
color.  His  own  account  of  such  things  in  his  capacity  of 
Pontifex  woald  have  had  a  singular  interest. 

Ccesars  Mission. — Of  Caesar  it  may  be  said  that  he  came 
into  the  world  at  a  special  time  and  for  a  special  object. 
A  new  life  was  about  to  dawn  for  mankind.  Poetry,  and 
faith,  and  devotion  were  to  spring  again  out  of  the  seeds 
whicli  were  sleeping  in  the  heart  of  humanity.  But  the  life 
which  is  to  endure  grows  slowly ;  and  as  the  soil  must  be  pre- 
pared before  the  wheat  can  be  sown,  so  before  the  Kingdom 
of  Heaven  could  throAV  up  its  shoots  there  was  needed  a 
kingdom  of  this  world  where  the  nations  were  neither  torn  in 
])iece3  by  violence,  nor  were  rushing  after  false  ideals  and 
spurious  ambitions.    Such  a  kingdom  was  the  Empire  of  the 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN'     HISTORY.  181 

Caesars  -  a  kingdom  where  peaceful  men  could  work,  think, 
and  speak  as  they  pleased,  aud  travel  freely  among  prov- 
inces ruled  for  the  most  part  by  Gallios,  who  protected  life 
and  jiroperty,  aud  forbade  fanatics  to  tear  each  other  in 
pieces  for  their  religious  opinions.  "It  is  not  lawful  for  us 
to  put  any  man  to  death,"  was  the  complaiut  of  the  Jewish 
priests  to  the  Roman  governor.  Had  Europe  and  Asia  beeu 
covered  with  independent  nations,  each  with  a  local  religion 
represented  in  its  ruling  powers,  Christianity  must  have  been 
stifled  in  its  cradle.  If  St,  Paul  had  escaped  the  sanhedrim 
at  Jerusalem,  he  would  have  been  torn  to  pieces  by  the  sil- 
versmiths at  Ephesus.  The  appeal  to  Cssar's  judgment-seat 
was  the  shield  of  his  mission,  and  alone  made  possible  his 
success.  — Froude. 


POMPEY    THE    GREAT. 

At  an  age  when  C?esar  was  still  idling  away  his  time, 
Pompey  (p.  59)  had  achieved  honors  such  as  the  veteran  gen- 
erals of  Rome  were  accustomed  to  regard  as  the  highest  to 
which  they  could  aspire The  civil  war  still  con- 
tinued to  rage,  and  few  did  better  service  to  the  party  of 
the  anstocrats  than  Pompey.  Others  were  content  to  seek 
their  personal  safety  in  Sulla's  camp ;  Pompey  was  resolved 
himself  to  do  something  for  the  cause.  He  made  his  way  to 
Picenum,  where  his  family  estates  were  situated  and  W'here 
his  own  influence  was  great,  and  raised  three  legions  (nearly 
twenty  thousand  men),  with  all  their  commissariat  and 
transport  complete,  and  hurried  to  the  assistance  of  Sulla. 
Three  of  the  hostile  generals  souglit  to  intercept  l)im.  He 
fell  with  his  whole  force  on  one  of  them,  and  crushed  him, 
carrying  off.  besides  his  victor}',  the  personal   distinction  of 


18::i  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

having  slain  in  single  combat  the  champion  of  the  opposing 
force. 

A  second  commander,  who  ventured  to  encounter  him, 
found  himself  deserted  by  his  army  and  was  barely  able  to 
escape;  a  third  was  totally  routed.  Sulla  received  his  young 
partisan,  who  was  not  more  than  twenty-three  years  of  age, 
with  distinguished  honors,  even  rising  from  his  seat  and 
uncovering  at  his  approach. 

During  the  next  two  years,  his  reputation  continued  to  in- 
crease. He  w^on  victories  in  Gaul,  in  Sicily,  and  in  Africa. 
As  he  was  returning  to  Eome  after  the  last  of  these  cam- 
paigns, the  great  Dictator  himself  headed  the  crowd  that 
went  forth  to  meet  him,  and  saluted  him  as  Pomjiey  the 
Great,  a  title  which  he  continued  to  use  as  his  family  name. 
But  there  was  a  further  honor  which  the  young  general  was 
anxious  to  obtain,  but  Sulla  Avas  unwilling  to  grant, — the 
supreme  glory  of  a  trium})h.  "  No  one,"  said  Sulla, "  who  was 
not  or  had  not  been  consul,  or  at  least  prffitor,could  triumph. 
The  first  of  the  Scipios,  who  had  won  Spain  from  the  Car- 
thaginians, had  not  asked  for  this  honor,  because  he  wanted 
this  qualification.  Was  it  to  be  given  to  a  beardless  youth, 
too  young  even  to  sit  in  the  Senate?"'  But  the  beanlless 
youth  insisted.  He  even  had  the  audacity  to  hint  that  the 
future  belonged  not  to  Sulla,  but  to  himself.  "  More  men," 
he  said,  "worship  the  rising  than  the  setting  sun."  Sulla 
did  not  happen  to  catch  the  words,  but  he  saw  the  emotion 
they  aroused  in  the  assembly,  and  asked  that  they  should  bo 
repeated  to  him.  His  astonishment  permitted  him  to  say 
nothing  more  than  "Let  him  triumph!  Let  him  triumph." 
And  triumph  he  did,  to  the  disgust  of  his  older  rivals,  whom 
he  intended,  but  that  the  streets  were  not  broad  enough  to 
allow  of  the  display,  still  further  to  affront  by  harnessing 
elephants  instead  of  horses  to  his  chariot. 


READINGS     IX     R  0  M  A  X     HISTORY.  183 

On  the  31st  of  December,  B.  C.  71,  being  still  a  simple 
gentleman — that  is,  having  held  no  civil  office  in  the  State — 
'  he  triumphed  for  the  second  time,*  and  on  the  following 
day,  bemg  then  some  years  below  the  legal  age,  and  having 
held  none  of  the  offices  by  which  it  was  usual  to  mount  to 
the  highest  dignity  in  the  commonwealth,  he  entered  on  his 
first  consulship,  Crassus  being  his  colleague. 

Still  he  had  not  yet  reached  the  height  of  his  glory. 
During  the  years  that  followed  his  consulship,  the  pirates 
who  infested  the  Mediterranean  had  become  intolerable.  In 
G7  B.  c.  a  law  was  proposed  appointing  a  commander  (who, 
however,  was  not  named),  who  should  have  absolute  power 
for  three  years  over  the  sea  as  far  as  the  Pillars  of  Hercules 
(the  Straits  of  Gibraltar),  and  the  coast  for  fifty  miles 
inland,  and  who  should  be  furnished  with  two  hundred 
ships,  as  many  soldiers  and  sailors  as  he  wanted,  and  more 
than  a  million  pounds  in  monc}'.  The  nobles  were  furious 
in  their  opposition,  and  jirepared  to  prevent  by  force  the 
passing  of  this  law.  The  proposer  narrowly  escaped  with 
his  life,  and  Pompey  himself  was  threatened.  But  all 
resistance  was  unavailing.  The  new  command  was  created, 
and,  of  course,  bestowed  upon  Pompey.  The  result  amply 
justilied  the  choice. 

A  still  greater  success  remained  to  be  won,  and,  in  Gl, 
Pompey  returned  to  Kunie  to  enjoy  a  third  triumph,  and 
tli;it  the  most  splendid  which  the  city  had  ever  Avitnessed 
(|).  5".).  The  revenue  of  the  State  had  been  almost  doubled 
by  these  conquests.  Never  before  was  such  a  sight  seen  in 
the  world,  and  if  Pompey  had  died  when  it  was  finished, 
iio  would  have  been  proclaimed  the  most  fortunate  of  man- 
kind.    Certainly  ho  wa.s  never  so  great  again  as  he  was  on 

•  Thi-  was  after  llie  "  QludiutocinI  War"  (p.  W)  conccniiii;;  which  Pompey 
prou'Jly  boasted :— '•  CraHfus  defeated  the  enemy,  but  I  pulled  up  the  war  by  the 
rooiH." 


184  EEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

that  day.  When  with  Caesar  and  Crassus  he  divided  all  the 
power  of  the  State,  he  was  only  the  second,  and  by  far  the 
second,    of    the    three.      His    influence,    his    prestige,    his 

popularity   declined  year  by  year And   then   his 

young  wife,  Julia,  Ca'sar's  daughter,  died,  and  the  hope  of 
peace  was  sensibly  lessened  by  her  loss.  Perhaps  the  first 
rupture  would  have  come  any  how;  when  it  did  come  it 
found  Pompey  quite  unprepared  for  the  conflict.  He  seemed 
indeed  to  be  a  match  for  his  rival,  but  his  strength  collapsed 
almost  at  a  touch.  "I  have  but  to  stamp  with  my  foot," 
he  said,  "and  soldiers  will  spring  up;"  yet  when  Ca^sar 
declared  war  by  crossing  the  Rubicon,  he  fled  without  a 
struggle.  In  little  more  than  a  year  and  a  half  all  was 
over.  The  battle  of  Pharsalia  was  fought  on  the  9th  of 
August,  and  on  September  29th  the  man  who  had  triumphed 
over  three  continents  lay  a  naked,  headless  corpse  on  the 
shore  of  Egypt. — Alfred  Church. 

The  First  Triumvirate  (p.  58). — For  Pompey  to  wit- 
ness the  rising  glory  of  Caz'sar,  aud  to  feel  in  his  own  per- 
son the  ascendency  of  Caesar's  character,  without  an  emo- 
tion of  jealousy,  would  have  demanded  a  degree  of  virtue 
which  few  men  have  ever  possessed.  They  had  been  united 
so  far  by  identity  of  conviction,  by  a  military  detestation  of 
anarchy,  by  a  common  interest  in  wringing  justice  from  the 
Senate  for  the  army  and  people,  and  by  a  pride  in  the  great- 
ness of  their  country,  which  they  were  determined  to  up- 
hold. These  motives,  however,  might  not  long  have  borne 
the  strain  but  for  other  ties,  which  had  cemented  their 
union.  Pompey  had  married  Caesar's  daughter,  to  whom 
he  was  passionately  attached  ;  and  the  personal  competition 
between  them  was  neutralized  by  the  third  element  of  the 
capitalist  party  represented  by  Crassus,  which,  if  they 
quarreled,    would    secure   the  supremacy  of  the  faction  to 


KEADIXGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTOEY.  185 

which  Crassus  attached  himself.  There  was  no  jealousy  on 
Caesar's  part.  There  was  no  occasion  for  it.  Ca?sar*s  fame 
was  rising.  Pompey  had  added  nothing  to  his  past  distinc- 
tions, and  the  glory  pales  which  does  not  grow  iu  luster. 
Xo  man  who  had  once  been  the  single  object  of  admiration, 
who  had  tasted  the  delight  of  being  the  first  in  the  eyes  of 
his  conntrymen,  could  find  himself  compelled  to  share  their 
applause  with  a  younger  rival  without  experiencing  a  pang. 
So  far  Pompey  had  borne  the  trial  well.  He  was  on  the 
whole,  notwithstanding  the  Egyptian  scandal,  honorable 
and  constitutionally  disinterested.  He  was  immeasurably 
superior  to  the  fanatic  Cato,  to  the  sliifty  Cicero,  or  the 
proud  and  worthless  leaders  of  tiie  senatorial  oligarchy. 
Had  the  circumstances  remained  unchanged,  the  severity  of 
the  situation  might  have  been  overcome.  But  two  mis- 
fortunes coming  near  upon  each  other  broke  the  ties  of 
family  connection,  and  by  destroying  the  balance  of  parties 
laid  Pompey  open  to  the  temptation  of  patrician  intrigue. 
In  the  j'ear  54  Caesar's  great  mother  Aurelia,  and  his  sister 
Julia,  Pompey's  wife,  both  died.  A  child  which  Julia  had 
borne  to  Pompey  died  also,  and  the  powerful  if  silent 
influence  of  two  remarkable  women,  and  the  joint  interest 
in  an  infant  who  would  iiave  been  Caesar's  heir  as  well  as 

Pompey's,  were  swept  away  together Then   came 

the  miserable  end  of  Crassus The  one  thought  of 

the  leaders  of  the  Senate  was  to  turn  the  opportunity  to 
advantage,  wrest  the  constitution  free  from  military  dicta- 
tion, shake  off  the  detested  laws  of  Cffisar,  and  revenge 
themselves  on  the  author  of  them.  Their  hope  was  in 
Pompey.  If  Pompey  could  be  won  over  from  C.Tsar,  the 
su-Miy  would  be  divided.  Pompey  they  well  knew,  unless  he 
had  a  stronger  head  tliaii  his  own  to  guide  him.  could  Ite 
used  till  the  victory  was  won.  and  then  be  thrust  aside. 


ISC  READINGS     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

Csesars  time  was  running  out,  and  when  it  was 

over  lie  had  been  promised  the  consulship.  That  consulship 
the  faction  of  the  conservatives  had  sworn  that  he  should 
never  hold.  Cato  was  threatening  him  with  impeachment, 
blustering  that  he  should  be  tried  under  a  guard.  Marcellus 
was  saying  openly  that  he  would  call  him  home  in  disgrace 

before    his    term    was    over The    aristocracy   had 

watched  his  progress  with  the  bitterest  malignity.  When 
he  was  struggling  with  the  last  spasms  of  Gallic  liberty,  they 
had  talked  in  delighted  whispers  of  his  reported  ruin.  But 
Cassar  had  conquered.  He  had  made  a  name  for  himself  as 
a  soldier,  before  which  the  Scipios  and  the  LucuUuscs,  the 
Syllas  and  the  Pompeys,  paled  their  glory.  He  was  coming 
back  to  lay  at  his  country's  feet  a  province  larger  than  Spain — 
not  subdued  only,  but  reconciled  to  subjugation ;  a  nation 
of  warriors,  as  much  devoted  to  him  as  his  own  legions. 

If  he  came  to  Eome  as  consul,  the  Senate  knew  too  well 
what  it  might  expect.  What  he  bad  been  before  he  would 
be  again,  but  the  more  severe  as  his  power  was  greater. 
Their  own  guilty  hearts,  perhaps,  made  them  fear  another 
Marian  conscription.  Unless  his  command  could  be  brought 
to  an  end  in  some  far  different  form,  their  days  of  power 
were  numbered,  and  the  days  of  inquiry  and  punishment 
w^ould  begin. 

Cicero  had  for  some  time  seen  wh.-it  was  coming.  He  had 
preferred  characteristically  to  be  out  of  the  way  at  the  mo- 
ment when  he  expected  that  the  storm  would  break,  and  had 
accepted  Mie  government  of  Cilicia  and  Cyprus.  He  was 
thus  absent  while  the  active  plot  was  in  preparation.  One 
great  step  had  been  gained — the  Senate  had  secured  Pompey. 
CiBsar's  greatness  was  too  much  for  him.  The  first  step  was 
to  weaken  CaBsar  and  to  provide  Pompey  with  a  force  in 
Italy.     The  Senate  discovered  suddenly  that  Asia  Minor  was 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  187 

in  danger  from  the  Parthians.  They  voted  that  Csesar  and 
Pompey  must  each  spare  a  legion  for  the  East.  Pompey 
gave  as  his  part  the  legion  which  he  had  lent  to  Caesar  for 
the  last  campaign.  Caesar  was  invited  to  restore  it  and  to 
furnish  another  of  his  own.  Caesar  was  then  in  Belgium. 
He  saw  the  object  of  the  demand  perfectly  clearly  ;  but  ho 
sent  the  two  legions  without  a  word,  contenting  himself  with 
making  handsome  presents  to  the  officers  and  men  on  their 
leaving  him.  When  they  reached  Italy  the  Senate  found 
that  they  were  wanted  for  home  service,  and  they  were  placed 
under  Pompey's  command  in  Campania. — Fkoude. 

The  Battle  of  Pharsalia. — One  morning,  on  the  Enip- 
eus,  near  Laj'issa,  the  Uth  of  August,  old  style,  or  towards 
the  end  of  May  by  real  time,  Csesar  had  broken  up  his  camp 
and  was  preparing  for  his  usual  leisurely  march,  when  he  per- 
ceived a  movement  in  Pompey's  lines  which  told  him  that 
the  moment  which  he  had  so  long  expected  was  come.  La- 
bienus,  the  evil  genius  of  the  Senate,  who  had  tempted  them 
into  the  war  by  telling  them  that  his  comrades  were  as  dis- 
affected as  himself,  and  had  fired  Ca'sar's  soldiers  into  inten- 
sified fierceness  by  his  barbarities  at  Durazzo,  had  spoken 
the  decided  word  :  "  Ik'lieve  not,"  Labienus  had  said,  "that 
this  is  the  ai"my  which  defeated  the  Gauls  and  the  Germans. 
I  was  in  tliose  Ijattles,  and  what  I  say  I  know.  That  army 
lias  disappeared.  Part  fell  in  action  ;  part  perished  of  fever 
in  Hie  autumn  in  Italy.  Many  were  left  behind,  unable  to 
move.  The  men  you  see  before  you  arc  levies  newly  drawn 
from  the  colonies  beyond  the  Po.  Of  the  veterans  that  were 
left,  the  best  were  killed  at  Durazzo." 

A  council  of  war  had  been  held  at  dawn.  There  had  been 
a  solemn  taking  of  oiitlis  agiiiii.  Labienus  swore  lli;i(-lie 
would  not  return  to  the  camp  except  as  a  con(|ueror  ;  so 
swore  Pompey:    so   swore    T/cntnlus,    Scipio,   Domitins:    so 


188  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

swore  all  the  rest.  They  had  reason  for  their  liigh  spirits. 
Pompey  had  forty-seven  thousand  Roman  infantry,  not  in- 
chidiug  his  allies,  and  seven  thousand  cavalry.  Caesar  had 
but  twenty-two  thousand,  and  of  horse  only  a  thousand. 
Pompey's  position  was  carefully  chosen.  His  right  wing  was 
covered  by  the  Enipeus,  the  opposite  bank  of  which  was  steep 
and  wooded.  His  left  spread  out  into  the  open  plain  of 
Pharsalia.  His  plan  of  battle  was  to  send  forward  his  cav- 
alry outside  over  the  open  ground,  with  clouds  of  archers  and 
slingers,  to  scatter  Caesar's  horse,  and  then  to  wheel  round 
and  envelop  his  legions.  Thus  he  had  thought  they  would 
lose  heart  and  scatter  at  the  first  shock.  Cgesar  had  foreseen 
what  Pompey  would  attempt  to  do.  His  own  scanty  cavalry, 
mostly  Gauls  and  Germans,  would,  he  well  knew,  be  unequal 
to  the  weight  which  would  be  thrown  on  them.  He  had 
trained  an  equal  number  of  picked  active  men  to  fight  in 
their  ranks,  and  had  thus  doubled  their  strength.  Fearing 
that  this  might  be  not  enough,  he  had  taken  another  pre- 
caution. The  usual  Roman  formation  in  battle  was  in  triple 
line.  Cresar  had  formed  a  fourth  line  of  cohorts,  specially 
selected,  to  engage  the  cavalry  ;  and  on  them,  he  said,  in 
giving  them  their  instructions,  the  result  of  the  action  would 
probably  depend. — Feoude. 

There  was  in  Ciesar's  army  a  volunteer  of  the  name  of 
Crastinus,  who  the  year  before  had  been  first  centurion  of  the 
tenth  legion,  a  man  of  pre-eminent  bravery.  He,  when  the 
signal  was  given,  says,  "Follow  me,  my  old  comrades,  and 
display  such  exertions  in  behalf  of  your  general  as  you  have 
determined  to  do  :  this  is  our  last  battle,  and  when  it  shall 
be  won,  he  will  recover  his  dignity,  and  we  our  liberty."  At 
the  same  time  he  looked  back  to  Ca?sar,  and  said,  "General, 
I  will  act  in  such  a  manner  to-day,  that  you  will  feel  grate- 
ful to  me  living  or  dead."     After  uttering  these  words,  he 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  189 

cliargcd  first  on  the  right  wing,  unci  about  one  hundred 
and  twenty  chosen  volunteers  of  the  same  century  followed. 

There  was  so  much  space  left  between  the  two  lines,  as 
sufficed  for  the  onset  of  the  hostile  armies :  but  Porapey 
had  ordered  his  soldiers  to  await  Caesar's  attack,  and  not  to 
advance  from  their  position,  or  suffer  their  line  to  be  put 
into  disorder.  And  he  is  said  to  have  done  this  by  the 
advice  of  Caius  Triarius,  that  the  impetuosity  of  the  charge 
of  Caesar's  soldiers  might  be  checked,  and  their  line  broken, 
and  that  Pompey's  troops  remaining  in  their  ranks,  might 
attack  them  while  in  disorder;  and  he  thought  that  the 
javelins  would  fall  with  less  force  if  the  soldiers  were  kept 
in  their  gi'ounil,  than  if  they  met  them  in  their  course;  at 
the  same  time  he  trusted  that  Caesar's  soldiers,  after  running 
over  double  the  usual  ground,  would  become  weary  and 
exhausted  by  the  fiitigue.  But  to  me,  Pompey  seems  to 
have  acted  without  sufficient  reason  :  for  there  is  a  certain 
impetuosity  of  spirit  and  an  alacrity  implanted  by  nature  in 
the  hearts  of  all  men,  which  is  inflamed  by  a  desire  to  meet 
the  foe.  This  a  general  should  endeavor  not  to  repress,  but 
to  increase  ;  nor  was  it  a  vain  institution  of  our  ancestors, 
that  the  trumpets  should  sound  on  all  sides,  and  a  general 
shout  be  raised;  by  which  they  imagined  that  the  enemy 
were  struck  witii  terror,  and  their  own  army  inspired  with 
courage. 

But  our  men,  when  the  signal  was  given,  rushed  forward 
wilii  their  javelins  ready  to  be  launched,  but  perceiving  that 
Pompey's  men  did  not  run  to  meet  their  charge,  having 
acquired  experience  by  custom,  and  being  practiced  in 
former  battles,  tiiey  of  tlieir  own  accord  represse<l  iiioir 
speed,  and  halted  almost  midway,  that  Ihey  might  not  come 
uj)  with  the  enemy  when  their  strength  Ava.s  exhausted  ;  and 
after  a  short  resj)ite   they  again   I'cnewed   their  coni'se.  ami 


190  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

threw  their  javelins,  and  instantly  drew  their  swords,  as 
Caesar  had  ordered  them.  Nor  did  Pompey's  men  fail  in 
this  crisis,  for  they  received  our  javelins,  stood  our  charge, 
and  maintained  their  ranks;  and,  having  launched  their 
javelins,  had  recourse  to  their  swords.  At  the  same  time, 
Pompey's  horse,  according  to  their  orders,  rushed  out  at  once 
from  his  left  wing,  and  his  whole  host  of  archers  poured 
after  them.  Our  cavalry  did  not  withstand  their  charge; 
but  gave  ground  a  little,  upon  which  Pompey's  horse  pressed 
them  more  vigorously,  began  to  file  off  in  troops,  and  flank  our 
army.  When  Csesar  perceived  this,  he  gave  the  signal  to  his 
fourth  line,  which  he  had  formed  of  the  six  cohorts.  They 
instantly  rushed  forward  and  charged  Pompey's  horse  with 
such  fury,  that  not  a  man  of  tiiem  stood  ;  but  all,  wheeling 
about,  not  only  quitted  their  post,  but  galloped  forward  to 
seek  a  refuge  in  tlie  highest  mountains.  By  their  retreat  the 
archers  and  slingers,  being  left  destitute  and  defenceless, 
were  all  cut  to  pieces.  The  cohorts,  pursuing  their  success, 
wheeled  about  upon  Pompey's  left  wing,  whilst  his  infantry 
still  continued  to  make  battle,  and  attacked  them  in  the 
rear. 

At  the  same  time,  Caesar  ordered  his  third  line  to  advance, 
which  till  then  had  not  been  engaged,  but  had  kept  their 
post.  Thus,  new  and  fresh  troops  having  come  to  the 
assistance  of  the  fatigued,  and  others  having  made  an  attack 
on  their  rear,  Pompey's  men  were  not  able  to  maintain  their 
ground,  but  all  fled;  nor  was  Csesar  deceived  in  his  opinion, 
that  the  victory,  as  he  had  declared  in  his  speech  to  his 
soldiers,  must  have  its  beginning  from  those  six  cohorts, 
which  he  had  placed  as  a  fourth  line  to  oppose  the 
horse.  For  by  them  the  cavalry  were  routed  ;  by  them,  the 
archers  and  slingers  were  cut  to  pieces  ;  by  them,  the  left 
wing  of  Pompey's  army  was  surrounded,  aiid  obliged  to  be 


EEADIXGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  191 

the  first  to  flee.  But  wlien  Pompey  saw  his  cavahy  routed, 
and  that  part  of  his  army  on  Avhich  lie  reposed  his  greatest 
hopes  thrown  into  confusion,  despairing  of  the  rest,  he 
quitted  the  tield,  and  retreated  straightway  on  horseback  to 
his  camp,  and  calhng  to  the  centurions,  whom  he  had 
placed  to  guard  the  praetorian  gate,  with  a  loud  voice,  that 
the  soldiers  might  hear :  "  Secure  the  camp,"  says  he, 
"defend  it  with  diligence,  if  any  danger  should  threaten  it ; 
I  will  visit  the  other  gates  and  encourage  the  guards  of  the 
camp."  Having  thus  said,  ho  retired  into  his  tent  in  utter 
despair,  yet  anxiously  waiting  the  issue. 

Caesar,  having  forced  the  Pompeians  to  flee  into  their 
entrenchment,  and  thinking  that  he  ought  not  to  allow 
them  any  respite  to  recover  from  their  fright,  exhorted  his 
soldiers  to  take  advantage  of  fortune's  kindness,  and  to 
attack  his  camp.  Though  they  were  fatigued  by  the  intense 
heat,  for  the  battle  had  continued  till  mid-day,  yet,  being 
prepared  to  undergo  any  labor,  they  cheerfully  obeyed  his 
command.  The  camp  was  bravely  defended  by  the  cohorts 
which  had  been  left  to  guard  it,  but  with  much  more  spirit 
by  the  Thracians  and  foreign  auxiliaries.  For  the  soldiers 
who  had  fled  for  refuge  to  it  from  the  field  of  battle, 
affrighted  and  exhausted  by  fatigue,  having  thrown  away 
their  arms  and  military  standards,  had  their  thoughts  more 
engaged  on  their  further  escape  than  on  the  defence  of  the 
camp.  Nor  could  the  troops  who  were  posted  on  the  battle- 
ments long  withstand  the  immense  number  of  our  darts, 
but,  fainting  under  their  wounds,  they  quitted  the  place, 
and,  under  the  conduct  of  their  centurions  and  tribunes, 
fled,  without  stopping,  to  the  high  mountains  which  joined 
the  camp. 

In  Pompey's  camp  you  might  see  arbors  in   which  tables 
were  laid,  a  largo  quantity  of  plate  set  out,  the  floors  of  the 


192  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

teut  covered  Avith  fresh  sods,  the  tents  of  Lucius  Lentnlus 
and  others  sliaded  with  ivy,  and  many  other  things  which 
were  proofs  of  excessive  luxury  and  a  confidence  of  victory, 
so  that  it  might  readily  be  inferred  that  they  had  no 
apprehensions  of  the  issue  of  the  day,  as  they  indulged 
themselves  in  unnecessary  pleasures,  and  yet  upbraided  with 
luxury  Cgesar's  army,  distressed  and  suffering  troops  who 
had  always  been  in  want  of  common  necessaries.  Pompey, 
as  soon  as  our  men  had  forced  the  trenches,  mounting  his 
horse  and  stripping  off  his  general's  habit,  went  hastily  out 
of  tlie  back  gate  of  the  camp,  and  galloped  with  all  speed  to 
Larissa.  Nor  did  he  stop  there,  but  with  the  same 
despatch,  collecting  a  few  of  his  flying  troops,  and  halting 
neither  day  nor  night,  he  arrived  at  the  sea-side,  attended 
by  only  thirty  horse,  and  went  on  board  a  victualing 
barque,  often  complaining,  as  we  have  been  told,  that  he 
had  been  so  deceived  in  his  expectation  that  he  was  almost 
persuaded  that  he  had  been  betrayed  by  those  from  whom 
he  had  expected  victory,  as  they  began  the  flight.— CiESAR's 
Commentaries. 

Two  hundred  only  of  Oa-sar's  men  had  fallen.  The  officers 
had  suffered  most.  The  gallant  Crastinus,  who  had  nobly 
fulfilled  his  promise,  had  been  killed,  among  many  others,  in 
opening  a  way  for  his  comrades.  The  Pompeians,  after  the 
first  shock,  had  been  cut  down  unresisting.  Fifteen  thou- 
sand of  them  lay  scattered  dead  about  the  ground.  Tliere 
were  few  wounded  in  these  battles.  The  short  sword  of  the 
Romans  seldom  left  its  work  unfinished. 

"  They  would  have  it  so,"  Caesar  is  reported  to  have  said, 
as  he  looked  sadly  over  the  littered  bodies  in  the  familiar 
patrician  dress.  "  After  all  that  I  had  done  for  my  country, 
I,  Caius  Caesar,  should  have  been  condemned  by  them,  as  a 
criminal  if  1  had  not  appealed  to  my  army." 


DEATH     OF     C-«SAR, 
WITH    EMBLEMS    OF    AKCH.EOLOGICAL    EXPLORATION. 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  193 

So  ended  the  battle  of  Pharsalia.  A  hundred  and  eighty 
standards  were  taken,  and  all  the  eagles  of  Pompey's  legions. 
In  Pompey's  own  tent  was  found  his  secret  correspondence, 
implicating  persons,  perhaps,  whom  Caesar  had  never  sus- 
pected, revealing  the  mysteries  of  the  past  three  years.  Curi- 
osity and  even  prudence  might  have  tempted  him  to  look  into, 
it.    His  only  wish  was  that  the  jiast  should  be  forgotten ; 

he  burnt  the  whole  mass  of  papers  unread. — Froude. 

• 

BRUTUS  AND  ANTONY  OVER  CESAR'S 
DEAD  BODY. 

[Scene.     Tlie  Forum.— Enicr  Brulus  and  Cassius  and  a  throng  of  citizens.    Brutus 
goes  into  the  rostrum. 

Citizen.  The  noble  Brutus  is  ascended  : — Silence! 

Brutus.  Be  patient  till  t!ie  last. — Romans,  countrymen, and 
lovers  I  hear  me  for  my  cause;  and  be  silent,  that  30U  may 
hear  :  believe  mo  for  mine  honor  ;  and  have  respect  to  mine 
honor,  that  you  may  believe :  censure  me  in  your  wisdom :  and 
awake  your  senses,  that  you  may  the  better  Judge.  If  there 
be  any  in  this  assembly,  any  dear  friend  of  Cajsar's,  to  him 
I  say,  that  Brutus'  love  to  Cajsar  was  no  less  than  his.  If 
then  that  friend  demand,  why  Brutus  rose  against  Cassar, 
this  is  my  answer: — Not  that  I  loved  Caesar  less,  but  that  I 
loved  Rome  more.  Had  you  rather  Ci\3sar  were  living,  and 
die  all  slaves,  than  that  Ca-sar  v/ere  dead,  to  live  all  free  men  ? 
As  Ca'.sar  loved  me,  I  weep  for  him ;  as  he  was  fortunate,  I 
rejoice  at  it;  as  he  was  valiant,  I  honor  him:  but,  as  he  was 
ambitious,  I  slew  him.  There  is  tears  for  his  love;  joy,  for 
his  fortune;  honor,  lor  his  valor;  and  death,  for  his  ambi- 
tion. Who  is  here  so  base,  that  would  be  a  bondman?  If 
any,  speak;  for  him  have  I  offended.  Who  is  here  so  rude, 
that  would  not  be  a  Roman  ?    If  any,  speak ;  for  him  have  I 


194  READIXGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

offended.  Who  is  hero  so  vile,  that  will  not  love  liis  country? 
If  any,  speak;  for  him  have  I  offended.    I  pause  for  a  reply. 

AIL  None,  Brutus,  none. 

Bru.  Then  none  have  I  offended. — I  have  done  no  more  to 
Cassar,  than  you  shall  do  to  Brutus.  The  question  of  his 
death  is  enrolled  in  the  Capitol:  his  glory  not  extenuated, 
wherein  he  was  worthy;  nor  his  offences  enforced,  for  which 
he  suffered  death. 

[Enter  Antony  and  others,  with  Caesar's  body.] 

Here  comes  las  body,  mourned  by  Mark  Antony,  who, 
though  he  had  no  hand  in  his  death,  shall  receive  the  benefit 
of  his  dying,  a  place  in  the  commonwealth;  as  which  of  you 
shall  not  ?  With  this  I  depart ;  that,  as  I  slew  my  best 
lover  for  the  good  of  Kome,  I  have  the  same  dagger  for  my- 
self, when  it  shall  please  my  country  to  need  my  death. 

*  *  4(  *  *  * 

Antuni/.  Friends,  Romans,  countrymen,  lend  me  your  ears. 
I  come  to  bury  Csesar,  not  to  praise  him. 
The  evil  that  men  do  lives  after  them; 
The  good  is  oft  interred  with  their  bones; 
So  let  it  be  with  Cajsar.     The  noble  Brutus 
Hath  told  you,  Cajsar  was  ambitious : 
If  it  were  so,  it  was  a  grievous  fault; 
And  grievously  hath  CjBsar  answered  it. 
Here,  under  leave  of  Brutus,  and  the  rest 
(For  Brutus  is  an  honorable  man, 
So  are  tliey  all,  all  honorable  men) 
Come  I  to  speak  in  Caesar's  funeral. 
He  was  ray  friend,  faithful  and  Just  to  me  : 
But  Brutus  says,  he  was  ambitious  ; 
And  Brutus  is  an  honorable  man. 
He  hath  brought  many  captives  home  to  Rome, 
Whose  ransoms  did  the  general  coffers  fill : 


RE  A  DIN  OS     IN     KOMAX     HISTORY.  195 

Did  this  in  Caesar  seem  ambitions  ? 

When  that  tlie  poor  have  cried,  Caesar  hath  wept: 

Ambition  should  be  made  of  sterner  stuff: 

Yet  Brutus  says,  he  was  ambitions ; 

And  Brutus  is  an  honorable  man. 

Yon  all  did  see,  that,  on  the  Lnpercal, 

I  thrice  presented  him  a  kingly  ciown, 

Which  he  did  thrice  refuse.     Was  this  ambition  ? 

Yet  Brutus  says  he  was  ambitions  ; 

And  sure  he  is  an  honorable  man. 

I  speak  not  to  disprove  what  Brutus  spoke. 

But  here  I  am  to  speak  wliat  I  do  know. 

You  all  did  love  him  once,  not  without  cause; 

What  cause  withholds  you  then  to  mourn  for  him? 

0  judgment,  thou  art  fled  to  brutish  beasts. 

And  men  have  lost  their  reason ! — bear  with  me  ; 

Mv  heart  is  in  the  coffin  there  with  Cresar, 

And  I  must  pause  till  it  come  back  to  me. 

But  yesterday  the  word  of  Cresar  might 

Have  stood  against  the  world  ;  now  lies  he  there 

And  none  so  poor  to  do  him  reverence. 

0  Masters !    If  I  were  disposed  to  stir 
Your  hearts  and  minds  to  mutiny  and  rage 

1  shonld  do  Brutus  wrong,  and  Cassius  wrong, 
Who,  you  all  know,  are  honorable  men. 

I  will  not  do  them  wrong;  I  rather  choose 

To  wrong  the  dead,  to  wrong  myself,  and  you, 

'I'liaii  I  will  wrong  such  honorable  men. 

But  here's  a  parchment  with  the  seal  of  Ca3sar. 

I  found  it  in  his  closet.     'Tis  his  will. 

Let  l)ut  the  commons  hoar  this  testament — 

Which,  pardon  me,  I  do  not  mean  to  read — 

And  they  would  go  and  kiss  di-ad  Caesar's  wounds, 


196  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

And  dip  their  nupkiiis  in  liis  sacred  blood  ; 
Yea,  beg  a  hair  of  him  for  memory, 
And,  dying,  mention  it  within  their  wills. 
Bequeathing  it,  as  a  rich  legacy. 
Unto  their  issue. 

at.  We'll  hear  the  will :  Eead  it,  Mark  Antony. 

All.  The  will!  the  will!  we  will  hear  Caesar's  will. 

Ard.  Have  patience,  gentle  friends:  I  must  not  read  it; 
It  is  not  meet  you  know  how  Caesar  loved  you. 
You  are  not  wood,  you  are  not  stones,  but  men ; 
And,  being  men,  hearing  the  will  of  Caesar, 
It  will  inflame  you,  it  will  make  you  mad : 
'Tis  good  you  know  not  that  you  are  his  heirs; 
For  if  you  should,  oh,  what  would  come  of  it  ! 

1  Plebeian.  Eead  the  will ;  we  will  hear  it,  Antony  ;  You 
shall  read  us  the  will ;  Caesar's  will ! 

Ant.  You  will  compel  me  then  to  read  the  will  ? 
Then,  make  a  ring  about  the  corpse  of  Caesar, 
And  let  me  shew  you  him  that  made  the  will. 
Shall  I  descend  ?    And  will  you  give  me  leave  ? 

All.  Come  dowai,  come  down! 

[Antony  quits  the  Rostrum.] 

Clt.  Eoom  for  Mark  Antony;  most  noble  Antony! 

Ant.  Nay,  press  not  so  upon  me;  stand  far  off. 

All.  Stand  back  !  room!  bear  back! 

Ant.  If  you  have  tears,  prepare  to  shed  them  now  ; 
You  all  do  know  this  mantle  :  I  remember 
The  first  time  ever  Caesar  put  it  on  ; 
'Twas  on  a  summer's  evening,  in  his  tent, 
That  day  he  overcame  the  Nervii : — 
Look,  in  this  place,  ran  Cassius'  dagger  through: 
See,  what  a  rent  the  envious  Casca  made  : 
Throuo-h  this  the  well-beloved  Brutus  stabbed; 


READIXGS     IX     ROM  AX     HISTORY.  19? 

And,  as  lie  plucked  his  cursed  steel  away, 

Mark  how  the  blood  of  Casar  followed  it. 

As  rushing  out  of  doors  to  be  resolved 

If  Brutus  so  unkindly  knocked,  or  no ! 

For  Brutus,  as  you  know,  w^as  Caesar's  angel : 

Judge,  oh,  you  gods,  how  dearly  Caesar  loved  him  ! 

This  was  the  worst,  unkindest  cut  of  all : 

For,  when  the  noble  Caesar  saw  him  stab. 

Ingratitude,  more  strong  than  traitor's  arms, 

Quite  vanquished  him  :  then  burst  his  miglity  heart; 

And,  in  his  mantle  muffling  up  his  face. 

Even  at  the  base  of  Pompey's  statue, 

Which  all  the  while  ran  blood,  great  Cassar  fell. 

0,  what  a  fall  was  there,  my  countrymen! 

Then  I,  and  you,  and  all  of  us  fell  down, 

Whilst  bloody  treason  flourished  over  us. — 

Oh,  now  you  weep  ;  and,  I  perceive,  you  feel 

The  dint  of  pity:  these  are  gracious  drops, 

Kind  souls!     What,  weep  you  when  you  but  heboid 

Our  Caesar's  vesture  Avounded  ?     Look  you  here. 

Here  is  himself,  marred,  as  you  see,  with  traitors. 

1  Pie.  0,  piteous  spectacle ! 

2  Pie.  0,  noble  Caesar  ! 

3  Pie.  0,  woful  day! 

4  Pie.  0,  traitors,  villains  ! 

2  Pie.  We   mW   be  revenged!   revenge;    about  —  seek  — 
bum — fire — kill — slay! — let  not  a  traitor  live. 

Shakspere. 


198  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 


ANTONY,    OCTAVIUS,    AND    CICERO. 

There  were  some  things  in  which  Mark  Antony  resembled 
Ciesar.  At  the  time  it  seemed  probable  that  he  would  play 
the  same  part,  and  even  climb  to  the  same  height  of  power. 
He  failed  in  the  end  because  he  wanted  the  power  of 
managing  others,  and,  still  more,  of  controlling  himself. 
He  came  of  a  good  stock.  His  grandfather  had  been  one  of 
the  greatest  orators  of  his  day ;  his  father  was  a  kindly, 
generous  man;  his  mother  a  kinswoman  of  CtBsar,  and  a 
matron  of  the  best  Roman  type.  But  he  seemed  little  likely 
to  do  credit  to  his  belongings.  His  riotous  life  became  con- 
spicuous even  in  a  city  where  extravagance  and  vice  were 
only  too  common,  and  his  debts,  though  not  so  enormous  as 
Cajsar's,  "were  greater,"  says  Plutarch,  "than  became  his 
youth,"  and  amounted  to  about  fifty  thousand  pounds.  He 
was  taken  away  from  these  dissipations  by  military  service 
in  the  East,  and  he  rapidly  acquired  considerable  reputation 
as  a  soldier.  Here  is  the  picture  that  Plutarch  draws  of 
him:  There  was  something  noble  and  dignified  in  his 
appearance.  His  handsome  beard,  his  broad  forehead,  his 
aquiline  nose,  gave  him  a  manly  look  that  resembled  the 
familiar  statues  and  pictures  of  Hercules.  There  was  indeed 
a  legend  that  the  Antonii  were  descended  from  a  son  of 
Hercules ;  and  this  he  was  anxious  to  support  by  his 
appearance  and  dress.  Whenever  he  aj^peared  in  public  he 
had  his  tunic  girt  low  about  the  hips,  carried  a  great  sword 
at  his  side,  and  wore  a  rough  cloak  of  Cilician  hair.  The 
habits  that  seemed  vulgar  to  others — his  boastfulness,  liis 
coarse  humor,  his  drinking  bouts,  the  way  be  had  of  eating 
in  public,  taking  his  meals  as  he  stood  from  the  soldiers' 
tables — had  an  astonishing  effect  in    making  him  popular 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  199 

with  the  soldiers.  His  bounty,  too,  which  he  gave  with  a 
liberal  hand  to  comrades  and  friends,  made  his  way  to  power 
easy.  On  one  occasion  he  directed  that  a  present  of  three 
thousand  pounds  should  be  given  to  a  friend.  His  steward, 
aghast  at  the  magnitude  of  the  sum,  thought  to  bring  it 
home  to  his  mastei''s  mind  by  putting  the  actual  coin  on  a 
table.  "What  is  this?"  said  Antony,  as  he  happened  to 
pass  by.  "The  money  you  bade  me  pay  over,"  was  the 
man's  reply.  "  Why,  I  had  thought  it  would  be  ten  times 
as  much  as  this.  This  is  but  a  trifle.  Add  to  it  as  much 
more." 

When  the  civil  war  broke  out,  Antony  joined  the  party 
of  Cfesar,  who,  knowing  his  popularity  with  the  troops, 
made  him  his  second  in  command.  He  did  good  service  at 
Pharsalia,  and  while  his  chief  went  on  to  Egypt,  returned 
to  Rome  as  his  representative.  There  were  afterwards 
differences  between  the  two;  Caesar  was  offended  at  the 
open  scandal  of  Antony's  manners  and  found  him  a  trouble- 
some adherent ;  Antony  conceived  himself  to  be  insuflBciently 
rewarded  for  his  services,  especially  when  he  was  called 
upon  to  pay  for  Pompey's  confiscated  property,  which  he 
had  bought.  Their  close  alliance,  however,  had  been 
renewed  before  Cresar's  death.  That  event  made  him  the 
first  man  in  Rome.  The  chief  instrument  of  his  power  was 
a  strange  one;  the  Senate,  seeing  that  the  people  of  Eome 
loved  and  admired  the  dead  man,  passed  a  resolution  that 
all  the  wishes  which  Csesar  had  left  in  writing  should  have 
the  force  of  law — and  Antony  had  the  custody  of  his  papers. 
People  langhed,  and  called  the  documents  "  Letters  from 
the  Styx."  Tlicre  was  the  gravest  susi)icion  that  many  of 
them  were  forged.  l>ul  for  a  time  they  were  a  very  powcr- 
fnl  machinery  for  effecting  his  jjurpose. 

Then  came  a  check.     Ca?sar's  nei)hew  and  heir,  Octavils, 


200  READIXGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

arrived  at  Eomc.  Born  in  tiie  year  of  Cicero's  consulship,  he 
was  little  more  than  nineteen ;  but  in  prudence,  state-craft, 
and  knowledge  of  tlio  world  he  was  fully  grown.  In  his 
twelfth  year  he  had  delivered  the  funeral  oration  over  his 
grandmother  Julia.  After  winning  some  distinction  as  a 
soldier  in  Spain,  be  had  returned  at  his  uncle's  bidding  to 
Apollonia,  a  town  on  the  eastern  coast  of  the  Adriatic,  where 
he  studied  letters  and  philosophy  under  Greek  teachers. 
Here  he  had  received  the  title  of  "Master  of  the  horse,"  an 
honor  which  gave  him  the  rank  next  to  the  Dictator  himself. 
He  came  to  Eome  with  tlie  purpose,  as  he  declared,  of 
claiming  his  inheritance  and  avenging  his  uncle's  death. 
But  he  knew  how  to  abide  his  time.  He  kept  on  terms  vvith 
Antoriy,  who  had  usurped  his  position  and  appropriated  his 
inheritance,  and  he  was  friendly,  if  not  with  the  actual 
murderers  of  Caesar,  yet  certainly  with  Cicero,  who  made  no 
secret  of  having  approved  their  deed. 

For  Cicero  also  had  now  returned  to  public  life.  For 
some  time  past,  both  before  Caesar's  death  and  after  it,  he 
had  devoted  himself  to  literature.  Now  there  seemed  to 
him  a  chance  that  something  might  yet  be  done  for  the 
republic,  and  he  returned  to  Rome,  which  he  reached  on  the 
lust  day  of  August.  The  next  day,  there -was  a  meeting  of 
the  Senate,  at  which  Antony  was  to  propose  certain  honors 
to  CaBsar.  Cicero,  wearied,  or  affecting  to  be  wearied,  by  his 
Journey,  was  absent,  and  was  fiercely  attacked  by  Antony, 
who  threatened  to  send  workmen  to  dig  him  out  of  his 
house.  The  next  day,  Cicero  was  in  his  place,  Antony  being 
absent,  and  made  a  dignified  defence  of  his  conduct,  and 
criticised  with  some  severity  the  jiroceedings  of  his  assailant. 
Still,  so  far,  there  was  no  irreconcilable  breach  between  the 
two  men.  He  still  believed,  or  professed  to  believe,  that 
Antony  was  capable  of  patriotism.     If  he  had  any  hopes  of 


R  E  A  D  I  2f  G  S     IX     ROMAN     H  I  S  T  0  K  T .  201 

peace,  these  were  soon  to  be  crushed.  After  a  fortnight  or 
more  spent  in  preparation,  assisted,  we  are  told,  by  a 
professional  teacher  of  eloquence,  Antony  came  down  to  the 
Senate  and.  delivered  a  savage  invective  against  Cicero.  The 
,  object  of  his  attack  was  again  absent.  He-  had  wished  to 
attend  the  meeting,  but  his  friends  hindered  him,  fearing, 
not  without  reason,  actual  violence  from  the  armed  attend- 
ants whom  Antony  was  accustomed  to  bring  into  the  senate- 
house. 

The  attack  was  answered  in  the  famous  oration  w^iich  is 
called  the  second  Philippic*  In  this,  Cicero  says,  si)eaking 
of  Antony's  purchase  of  Pompey's  confiscated  proi)erty: — 
*'  He  was  wild  with  joy,  like  a  character  in  a  farce  ;  a  begga^ 
one  day,  a  millionaire  the  next.  But,  as  some  writer  sa3^s, 
*I11  gotten,  ill  kept.'  It  is  beyond  belief,  it  is  an  absolute 
miracle,  how  he  squandered  tliis  vast  property — in  a  few 
months  do  I  say  ? — no,  in  a  few  days.  There  was  a  great 
cellar  of  wine,  a  very  great  quantity  of  excellent  plate, 
costly  stulfs,  plenty  of  elegant  and  even  splendid  furniture, 
just  as  one  might  expect  in  a  man  who  was  affluent  Avitliout 
being  luxurious.  And  of  all  this  within  a  few  days  there 
was  nothing  left.  I  can  scarcely  believe  that  the  whole 
ocean  could  have  swallowed  up  so  quickly  possessions  so 
numerous,  so  scattered,  and  lying  at  places  so  distant. 
Nothing  was  locked  up,  nothing  scaled,  nothing  catalogued. 
Wliole  store-rooms  were  given  away  to  the  vilest  creatures. 
Actors  and  actresses  of  burlesque  were  busy  each  with 
plunder  of  tlieir  owu.  Tlie  numsion  was  full  of  dice  players 
and  drunkards.  There  was  drinking  fri)ni  morning  to 
night,  and  I  hat  in  many  places.  His  losses  at  dice  (for  even 
he  is  not  lucky)  kept  mounting  u]i.     In  the  clianilx'fs  of 

♦  The  oriitioiis  asuiiiHt  Antony— of  wliicli  tlicro  an;  fourleeii— arc  culli^d 
"PliilJppicH,"  u  jiaino  iraiinfcTruii  to  theiii  from  tlic  groat  fpcccheu  iu  wiiicb 
DeiiioHiheDOH  alluckod  Philiii  of  Mucedoii. 


202  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

slaves  3'ou  might  see  on  the  beds  the  j^urple  coverlets  which 
had  belonged  to  the  great  Ponipey.  No  wonder  that  all 
this  wealth  was  spent  so  quickly.  Eeckless  men  so  aban- 
doned might  well  have  speedily  devoured,  not  only  the 
patrimony  of  a  single  citizen,  however  ample — atid  ample  it 
was — but  whole  cities  and  kingdoms." 

The  speech  was  never  delivered,  but  was  circulated  in 
writing.  Toward  the  end  of  44,  Antony,  who  found  the 
army  deserting  him  for  the  young  Octavius,  left  Eome,  and 
hastened  into  northern  Italy,  to  attack  Decimus  Brutus. 
Brutus  was  not  strong  enough  to  venture  on  a  battle  with 
him,  and  shut  himself  up  in  Mutina.  Cicero  continued  to 
^ake  the  leading  part  in  affairs  at  Eome,  delivered  the  third 
and  fourth  Philippics  in  December,  44,  and  the  ten  others 
during  the  five  months  of  the  following  year.  The  four- 
teenth was  spoken  in  the  Senate,  when  the  fortunes  of  the 
falling  republic  seem  to  have  revived.  A  great  battle  had 
been  fought  at  Mutina,  in  which  Antony  had  been  com- 
pletely defeated  ;  and  Cicero  proposed  thanks  to  the  com- 
manders and  troops,  and  honors  to  those  who  had  fallen. 

The  Joy  Avith  which  these  tidings  had  been  received  was 
very  brief.  Of  the  three  generals  named  in  the  vote  of 
thanks,  the  two  who  had  been  loyal  to  the  republic  were 
dead;  the  third,  the  young  Octavius,  had  found  the 
opportunity,  for  which  he  had  been  waiting,  of  betraying  it. 
The  soldiers  were  ready  to  do  his  bidding,  and  he  resolved 
to  seize  by  their  help  the  inheritance  of  power  which  his 
uncle  had  left  him.  Antony  had  fled  across  the  Alps,  and 
had  been  received  by  Lepidus,  who  was  in  command  of  a 
large  army  in  that  province.  Lepidus  resolved  to  play  the 
part  which  Crassus  had  jilayed  sixteen  years  before.  He 
brought  about  a  reconciliation  between  Octavius  and  Antony, 
as  Crassus  liad  reconciled  Pompey  and  Csesar,  and  was  him- 


EE  A  DINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  203 

self  admitted  as  a    third  into   their  alliance.     Thus   was 
formed  the  Second  Triumvirate  (p.  G2). 

The  three  chiefs  who  had  agreed  to  divide  the  Koman 
world  between  them  met  on  a  little  island  and  discussed 
their  plans.  Three  days  were  given  to  their  consultations, 
the  chief  subject  being  the  catalogue  of  enemies,  public  and 
private,  who  Avere  to  be  destroyed.  Each  had  a  list  of  his 
own;  and  on  Antony's  the  first  name  was  Cicero.  Lepidus 
assented,  as  he  was  ready  to  assent  to  all  the  demands  of  his 
more  resolute  colleagues  ;  but  the  young  Octavius  is  said 
to  have  long  resisted,  and  to  have  given  way  only  on  the 
last  day.  A  list  of  betv\'een  two  and  three  thousand  names 
of  senators  and  knights  was  drawn  up.  Seventeen  were 
singled  out  for  instant  execution,  and  among  these  seven- 
teen was  Cicero.  He  was  staying  at  his  home  in  Tusculum 
with  bis  brother  Quintus  when  the  news  reached  him.  His 
first  impulse  was  to  make  for  the  sea-coast.  If  he  could 
reach  Macedonia,  where  Brutus  had  a  powerful  array,  he 
would,  for  a  time  at  least,  be  safe.  The  two  brothers 
started,  but  Quintus  had  little  or  nothing  with  him,  and 
was  obliged  to  go  home  to  fetch  some  money.  Cicero,  who 
was  himself  but  ill  provided,  pursued  his  journey  alone. 
Reaching  the  coast  he  embarked.  When  it  came  to  the 
point  of  leaving  Italy  his  resolution  failed  him.  He  had 
always  felt  the  greatest  aversion  for  camp  life.  He  had  had 
an  odious  experience  of  it  when  Pompcy  was  struggling 
with  Cffisar  for  the  mastery.  He  Avould  sooner  die,  he 
thought,  than  make  a  trial  of  it  again.  He  landed,  and 
traveled  twelve  miles  towards  Rome.  Some,  afterwards,  said 
that  he  still  cherished  hojics  of  being  protected  by  Antony; 
otiicrs  that  it  wa>  his  ])ur])osc  to  make  his  way  into  the 
house  of  Octavius  and  kill  himself  on  his  hearth,  cursing 
him   with    his   last   breath,  but  that  he  was  deterred  l»y  the 


204  READINGS     IN     KOMAN     HISTORY. 

fear  of  being  seized  and  tortured.  Any  how,  he  turned 
back,  and  allowed  his  slaves  to  take  him  to  Capua.  The 
plan  of  taking  refuge  with  Brutus  was  probably  urged  upon 
him  by  his  companions,  who  felt  that  this  gave  the  only 
chance  of  their  own  escape.  Again  he  embarked,  and  again 
he  landed.  Almost  by  main  force  his  faithful  slaves  put 
him  into  his  litter  and  carried  him  toward  the  coast. 
Antony's  soldiers  now  reached  the  yilla,  the  officer  in  com- 
mand being  an  old  client  whom  Cicero  had  successfully 
defended  on  a  charge  of  murder.  They  found  the  doors 
shut  and  burst  them  open.  The  inmates  denied  all  knowl- 
edge of  their  master's  movements,  till  a  young  Greek,  one 
of  his  brother's  freedraen,  whom  Cicero  had  taken  a  pleasure 
in  teaching,  showed  the  officer  the  litter  which  was  being 
carried  through  the  shrubbery  of  the  villa  to  the  sea.  Tak- 
ing with  him  some  of  his  men,  he  hastened  to  follow. 
Cicero,  hearing  their  steps,  bade  the  bearers  set  the  litter  on 
the  ground.  He  looked  out,  and  stroking  his  chin  with 
his  hand,  as  his  habit  was,  looked  steadfastly  at  the  mur- 
derers. His  face  was  pale  and  worn  with  care.  The  officer 
struck  him  on  the  neck  with  his  sword,  some  of  the  rough 
soldiers  turning  away  while  the  deed  was  done.  The  head 
and  hands  were  cut  off  by  order  of  Antony,  and  nailed  up  in 
the  forum.* 

Many  years  afterwards  the  Emperor  Augustus,  coming 
unexpectedly  upon  one  of  his  grandsons,  saw  the  lad  seek  to 
hide  in  his  robe  a  volume  which  he  had  been  reading.  He 
took  it,  and  found  it  to  be  one  of  the  treatises  of  Cicero. 
He  returned  it  with  these  words :  "  He  was  a  good  man  and 
a  lover  of  his  country." — Alfred  Church. 

So   ended    Cicero,    a   tragic   combination  of  magnificent 

*  "To  speak  there,"  fias's  Collins,  "more  eloquently  than  ever  the  living  lips 
bad  epoken,  of  the  dead  liberty  of  Rome." 


READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 


f  L    ,"V  I    *  H        \J  . 


IIU     l.iXiKKU    OUT,     AND    STROKING     HIS     CHIN     WITH     HIS     HAND,     AS     Ills     HAIIIT 
WAS,     LOOKED     bTEADFASTLY     AT    THB     MUKDEKEKS.     (Sif   I'Oge  iM.) 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  205 

talents,  high  aspirations,  and  true  desire  to  do  right,  with 
an  infirmity  of  purpose  and  a  latent  insincerity  of  character 
which  neutralized  and  could  almost  make  us  forget  his 
nobler  qualities.  In  his  own  eyes  he  was  always  the  first 
person.  He  had  been  made  unhappy  by  the  thought  that 
posterity  might  rate  Pompey  above  himself.  Closer  acquaint- 
ance had  reassured  him  about  Pompey,  but  in  Ceesar  he  was 
conscious  of  a  higher  presence,  and  he  rebelled  against  the 
humiliating  acknowledgment.  Supreme  as  an  orator  he 
could  always  be,  and  an  order  of  things  was,  therefore,  most 
desirable  where  oratory  held  the  highest  place.  Thus  he 
chose  his  part  with  the  honi,  whom  he  despised  while  he 
supported  them,  drifting  on  through  vacillation  into 
treachery,  till  "the  ingredients  of  the  poisoned  chalice  were 
commended  to  his  own  lips." 

In  Cicero,  nature  half-made  a  great  man  and  left  him 
uncompleted.  Our  characters  are  written  in  our  forms,  and 
the  bust  of  Cicero  is  the  key  to  his  history.  The  brow  is 
broad  and  strong,  the  nose  large,  the  lips  tightly  compressed, 
the  features  lean  and  keen  from  restless  intellectual  energy. 
The  loose  bending  figure,  and  the  neck,  too  weak  for  the 
weight  of  the  head,  explain  the  infirmity  of  will,  the  j)assion, 
the  cunning,  the  vanity,  and  the  absence  of  manliness  and 
of  veracity.* — Froude. 

•  As  an  example  of  Cicero's  innincerity  compare  the  following: 
Cicero  to  C'««a;.— [Shortly  before  the  asga«»ination.]     "  How  can  we  praise,  how 
can  we  love  you  c iifTIcicntly  ?    By  the  godn,  the  very  walls  of  this  house  are  eloquent 

with  gratitude By   the  laws  of  war  we  were   under   your    feet,  to  be 

(les'troycd,  if  you  so  willed.    We  live  by  your  goodness Be  yon,  therefore, 

watchful  and  li't  us  bo  diligent.  Who  is  so  careless  of  his  own  and  the  common 
welfare  as  to  be  ignorant  that  on  yeur  i)rescrvution  his  own  depends,  miuI  that  all 
onr  livcK  are  bound  up  in  yours?  I,  as  in  duty  bound,  think  of  you  by  night  and 
day  ;  I  pondfr  over  the  accidents  of  humanity,  the  uncertainty  of  health.  \'\\v.  frailty 
of  onr  common  nature,  and  I  trrievc  to  think  that  the  commonwealth  which  ought  to 

be  immortal  should  hang  on  the  breath  of  a  single  man Salvation  there 

can  b<?  noni'  for  us,  Cii'siir,  unlc-s  yon  iire  preserved.  Tliireforc,  we  exhort  yon, 
we  beseech  you,  to  watch  over  your  own  safily.  You  believe  that  you  are  lhre:itened 
by  a  secret  peril.    From  my  own  heart  I  say,  and  I  i-peak  for  others  as  well  as  my- 


20G  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 


DEATH    OF    CATO    THE    STOIC* 

The  last  army  of  the  republic  had  been  destroyed 
at  Thapsns,  and  Cajsar  was  undisputed  master  of  the 
world.  Cato  vainly  endeavored  to  stir  up  the  people  of 
Utica,  a  town  near  Carthage,  in  which  he  had  taken  up  his 
quarters;  when  they  refused,  he  resolved  to  put  an  end  to 
his  life.  A  kinsman  of  Caesar  who  was  preparing  to  inter- 
cede with  tlie  conqueror  for  the  lives  of  the  vanquished 
leaders,  begged  Cato's  help  in  revising  his  speech.  "For 
your  sake,"  he  said,  "I  should  think  it  no  shame  to  clasp 
his  hands  and  fall  at  his  knees."  "  Were  I  wilUng  to  take 
my  life  at  his  hands,"  replied  Cato,  "I  should  go  alone  to 
ask  it.  But  I  refuse  to  live  by  the  favor  of  a  tyrant.  Still, 
as  there  are  three  hundred  others  for  whom  you  are  to 
intercede,  let  us  see  what  can  be  done  with  the  speed). '" 
This  business  finished,  he  took  an  affectionate  leave  of  his 
friend,  commending  to  his  good  offices  his  son  and  his 
friends.  On  his  son  he  laid  a  strict  injunction  not  to 
meddle  with  pubhc  life.  Such  a  part  as  was  worthy  of  tlie 
name  of  Cato  no  man  could  take  again  ;  to  take  any  other 
would  be  shameful.  Then  followed  the  bath,  and  after  the 
bath,  dinner,  to  which  he  had  invited  a  number  of  friends, 
magistrates  of  the  town.      He  sat  at  the  meal,  instead  of 

reclining.     This  had  been  his  custom  ever  since  the  fated 

>. 

pelf,  we  will  stand  as  gentries  over  yonr  safety,  and  we  will  interpose  our  own  bodies 
between  you  and  any  danjrer  which  may  menace  you." 

Cicero  of  CVfsar.— [After  the  as^sassination.]  "  What  difference  is  there  between  ad- 
vice before-hand  and  approbation  afterward  ?  What  does  it  matter  whether  I  wished 
it  to  be  done,  or  rejoiced  that  it  was  done  ?  Is  there  a  man,  save  Antony  and  those 
who  were  glad  to  have  Cajsar  reign  over  us,  that  did  not  wish  him  to  be  killed,  or 
that  disapproved  when  he  was  killed  ?  All  were  in  fault,  for  all  the  Boui  joined  in 
killing  him.  so  far  as  lay  in  them.  Some  were  not  consulted,  some  wanted  courage, 
Bome  opportunity.    All  were  willing." 

*  Great-grandson  of  Cato  the  Censor. 


KEADIXGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  207 

dav  of  Pharsalia.  After  dinner,  over  the  wine,  there  was 
much  learned  talk,  and  this  not  other  than  cheerful  in 
tone.  But  when  the  conversation  happened  to  turn  on  one 
of  the  favorite  maxims  of  the  Stoics,  "  Only  the  good  man 
is  free  ;  the  bad  are  slaves,"  Cato  expressed  himself  with  an 
energy  and  even  a  fierceness  that  made  the  company  suspect 
some  terrible  resolve.  The  melancholy  silence  that  ensued 
warned  the  speaker  that  he  had  betrayed  himself,  and  he 
hastened  to  remove  the  suspicion  by  talking  on  other  topics. 
After  dinner  he  took  his  customary  walk,  gave  the  necessary 
orders  to  the  officers  on  guard,  and  then  sought  his  chamber. 
Here  he  took  up  the  Phaedo,  the  famous  dialogue  in  which 
Socrates,  on  the  day  when  he  is  to  drink  the  poison,  dis- 
cusses the  immortality  of  the  soul.  He  had  almost  finished 
the  book,  when,  chancing  to  turn  his  eyes  upwards,  he  per- 
ceived that  his  sword  had  been  removed.  His  son  had 
removed  it  while  he  sat  at  dinner.  He  called  a  slave  and 
asked,  "Who  has  taken  my  sword?"  As  the  man  said 
nothing,  he  I'esumed  his  book ;  but  in  the  course  of  a  few 
miinites  finding  that  search  was  not  being  made,  he  asked 
for  the  sword  again.  Another  interval  followed  ;  j;nd  still 
it  was  not  furthcoming.  His  anger  was  now  roused.  He 
vehemently  reproached  the  slaves,  and  even  struck  one  of 
them  with  his  fist,  which  he  injured  by  the  blow.  "My  son 
and  my  slaves,"  he  said,  "are  betraying  me  to  the  enemy." 
He  would  listen  to  no  entreaties.  "  Am  I  a  madman,"  he 
said,  ''  that  I  am  strii^ped  of  my  arms  ?  Are  you  going  to 
bind  my  hands  and  give  me  up  to  Caesar?  As  for  the 
sword  I  can  do  without  it;  I  need  but  hold  my  breath,  or 
dash  my  iicad  against  the  wall.  It  i»*  idle  to  think  that  you 
can  keep  a  man  of  my  years  alive  against  his  will."  It  was 
felt  to  be  impossible  to  ])ersist  in  the  face  of  this  delcrmina- 
tion,  and  a  young  slave-lwy  brought  back   the  sword.     Cato 


208  READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

felt  the  weapon,  and  finding  that  the  blade  was  straight  and 
the  edge  perfect,  said,  "Now  I  am  my  own  master.'"'  He 
then  read  the  Phffido  again  from  beginning  to  end,  and 
afterwards  fell  into  so  profonnd  a  sleep  that  persons  stand- 
ing outside  the  chamber  heard  his  breathing.  About  mid- 
night he  sent  for  his  physician  and  one  of  his  freedmen. 
The  freedmau  was  commissioned  to  inquire  whether  his 
friends  had  set  sail.  The  physician  he  asked  to  bind  up  his 
wounded  hand,  a  request  which  his  attendants  heard  with 
delight,  as  it  seemed  to  indicate  a  I'esolve  to  live.  He  again 
sent  to  inquire  about  his  friends  and  expressed  his  regret  at 
the  rough  weather  which  they  seemed  likely  to  have.  The 
birds  were  now  beginning  to  twitter  at  the  approach 
of  dawn,  and  he  fell  into  a  short  sleep.  The  freedmau 
returned  with  news  that  the  harbor  was  quiet.  When  he 
found  himself  again  alone,  he  stabbed  himself  with  the 
sword,  but  the  blow,  dealt  as  it  was  by  the  wounded  hand, 
was  not  fatal.  He  fell  fainting  on  the  couch,  knocking 
down  a  counting  board  which  stood  near,  and  gToaning. 
His  son  with  others  rushed  into  the  chamber,  and  the 
physician  finding  that  the  wound  was  not  mortal,  proceeded 
to  bind  it  up.  Cato,  recovering  his  consciousness,  thrust 
the  attendants  aside,  and  tearing  open  the  wound,  expired. — 
Alfred  CnuRCif. 

Comparison  of  Cato  and  Caesar. — Within  my  rec- 
ollections there  have  arisen  two  men  of  remarkable  powers, 
though  of  a  very  different  character,  Marcus  Cato  and 
Caius  Caesar,  whom,  since  the  subject  has  brought  them 
before  me,  it  is  not  my  intention  to  pass  in  silence,  but  to 
describe,  to  the  best  of  my  ability,  the  disposition  and 
manners  of  each. 

Their  birth,  age,  and  eloquence,  were  nearly  on  an 
equality;  their  greatness  of  mind  was  similar,  as  was  also 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  209 

their  reputation,  though  attained  by  different  means.  Caesar 
grew  eminent  by  generosity  and  munificence  ;  Cato  by  the 
integrity  of  his  life.  Ctesar  was  esteemed  for  his  humanity 
and  benevolence;  austereness  bad  given  dignity  to  Cato. 
Caesar  acquired  renown  by  giving,  relieving,  and  pardoning; 
Cato  by  bestowing  nothing.  In  Caesar  there  was  refuge  for 
the  unfortunate;  in  Cato,  destruction  for  the  bad.  In  CaBsar, 
his  easiness  of  temper  was  admired ;  in  Cato,  his  firmness. 
Caesar,  in  fine,  had  applied  himself  to  a  life  of  energy  and 
activity;  intent  upon  the  interest  of  his  friends,  he  was 
neglectful  of  his  own ;  he  refused  nothing  to  others  that  was 
worthy  of  acceptance,  while  for  himself  he  desired  great 
power,  the  command  of  an  arnw,  and  a  new  war  in  Avhich 
his  talents  might  be  displayed.  But  Cato's  ambition  was 
that  of  temperance,  discretion,  and,  above  all,  of  austerity; 
he  did  not  contend  in  splendor  with  the  rich,  or  in  faction 
with  the  seditious,  but  with  the  brave  in  fortitude,  with  the 
modest  in  simplicity,  with  the  temperate  in  abstinence ;  he 
was  more  desirous  to  be,  than  to  a])pear,  virtuons;  and  thus, 
the  less  he  courted  popularity,  the  more  it  pursued  him. — 
Sallust. 


THE    AUGUSTAS    AGE. 

Rome  Under  Augustus. — The  course  of  Roman  story 
now  runs  with  almost  unbroken  smoothness  over  a  level 
routine.  Peace  is  severed  from  freedom.  The  laws  and 
executive  are  still  marked  by  vigor  and  sagacity,  but  they 
no  longer  wear  the  impress  of  free  debate,  or  election.  No 
rival  actors  arouse  the  passions,  or  command  the  attention 
of  the  senate.     Even  the  annual  elections  rarely  disturb  the 


310  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

slumbei's  of  the  forum  ;  Hortensius  and  Cicero  have  vanished 
with  Milo  and  Clodius.  It  may  have  been  more  pleasant  to 
live  under  a  well-regulated  police  and  be  always  within 
trumpet-call  of  the  Pra?torian  Guards,  than  to  run  the  risk 
of  being  knocked  on  the  head  by  day,  or  burnt  out  at  night 
by  a  mob  of  paid  or  volunteer  ruffians;  yet  it  is  difficult  to 
invest  a  staid  and  decorous  city  with  the  interest  that  per- 
tains to  the  election  of  the  Gracchi.  The  Ehenish  and 
Danubian  frontiers  still  bustle  with  garrisons  and  now  and 
then  a  panting  courier  gallops  along  the  Flaminian  Way 
with  a  budget  of  disastrous  news.  But  though  Varus  and 
his  legions  are  exterminated,  the  Cimbri  have  not  yet  passed 
the  Alps.  All  the  great  beacons  of  war  are  burned  down ; 
Gaul  is  quiet;  Parthia  is  engrossed  by  its  OAvn  factions;  the 
Mediterranean  is  as  clear  of  pirates  as  the  Lucrine  Lake; 
and  the  ceaseless  tramp  of  the  legions  is  succeeded  by  the 
routine  of  stationary  garrisons.  Above  all,  rises  the  impos- 
ing figure  of  the  Augustan  C»sar,  solitary  as  the  statue  of 
Athene  upon  the  Acropolis. — Edinburgh  Eeview. 

The  Personal  Augustus. — In  his  personal  habits  and 
demeanor  Augustus  carefully  distinguished  between  the 
Imperator  and  the  Princeps.  He  protected  his  personal 
dignity  by  withdrawing  from  the  familiarity  with  which 
Julius  Caesar  had  allowed  himself  to  address  his  legionaries. 
The  conqueror  of  the  Gauls  had  deigned  to  call  the  instru- 
ments of  his  victories  by  the  name  of  fcUoiv-soIdiers ;  but 
Augustus  never  spoke  of  them  but  as  his  soldiers  only. 
At  the  same  time,  however,  as  the  prince  of  the  senate  and 
the  people,  he  studiously  disguised  all  consciousness  of  his 
deserts,  and  shrank  from  the  appearance  of  claiming  the 
honors  due  to  him.  Amidst  the  magnificence  displayed 
around  him,  which  he  chose  to  encourage  in  his  nobles,  his 
own  manners  were  remarkable  for  tlieir  sip.iplicity,  and  were 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  ^11 

regulated,  not  by  his  actual  pre-eminence,  but  by  the  posi- 
tion he  affected  to  occupy  of  a  modest  patrician.  His  man- 
sion on  the  Palatine  hill  was  moderate  in  size  and  decora- 
tion, and  he  showed  his  contempt  for  the  voluj)tuous  appli- 
ances of  jiatrician  luxury  by  retr.ining  the  same  bed-chamber 
both  in  winter  and  summer.  It  was  from  a  peculiarity  of 
taste,  however,  rather  than  any  politic  calculation,  that, 
instead  of  works  of  painting,  or  sculpture,  he  was  fond  of 
collecting  natural  curiosities,  such  as  the  fossil  bones  of 
mammoths  and  saurians,  wliich  were  found  in  abundance 
in  this  island  of  Caprea?,  and  were  vulgarly  reputed  to  be  the 
remains  of  giants  and  heroes.  His  dress  was  that  of  a  plain 
senator,  and  he  let  it  be  known  that  his  robe  was  woven  by 
the  hands  of  Livia  herself  and  the  maidens  of  her  apart- 
ment. He  was  seen  to  traverse  the  streets  as  a  private 
citizen,  with  no  more  than  the  ordinary  retinue  of  slaves  and 
clients,  addressing  familiarly  the  acquaintances  he  met, 
taking  them  courteously  by  the  hand,  or  leaning  on  their 
shoulders,  allowing  himself  to  be  summoned  as  a  witness  in 
their  suits,  and  often  attending  in  their  houses  on  occasions 
of  domestic  interest.  At  table  his  habits  were  sober  and 
decorous,  and  his  mode  of  living  abstemious:  he  was 
generally  tlnf  last  to  approach  and  the  earliest  to  quit  the 
board.  His  guests  were  few  in  number,  and  chosen,  for  tlie 
most  part,  for  their  social  qnaltities:  Virgil  and  Horace,  the 
plel)eian  poets,  were  as  welcome  to  his  hours  of  recreation  as 
Pollio  or  Mcssala.  His  conversation  turned  on  subjects  of 
intellectual  interest;  he  disdained  the  amusement  which  the 
vulgar  rich  derived  from  dwarfs,  idiots,  and  monsters. 

He  was  vigilant  in  marking,  and  stern  in  repressing,  all 
acts  of  defiance,  or  i)resumption  on  the  part  of  his  subjects. 
The  mild  and  affable  ))atrician,  whose  wluile  heart  seemed  to 
be   wranncd   up  in    schemes  for  the  promotion  of  general 


21^  READINGS     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

pros23erity  and  individual  comfort,  was  clianged  at  once  into 
a  jealous  tyrant  at  the  first  sign  of  political  rivalry.  Painful 
was  the  impression  made  upon  the  public  mind  when  it 
appeared,  from  one  melancholy  instance,  that  the  mere 
frown  of  so  kind  a  master  was  felt  as  a  disgrace  at  his  court, 
and  that  disgrace  at  court  was  regarded  as  no  other 
than  a  sentence  of  death.  Cornelius  Gallus,  a  Roman 
knight,  a  man  of  fasliion  and  accomplishments,  a  poet 
himself  of  considerable  mark,  and  the  companion  of 
poets  and  statesmen,  had  been  entrusted  by  Augustus 
with  the  government  of  Egypt,  where  he  had  done  him 
faithful  service.  But  the  splendor  of  his  position,  as  the 
first  Eoman  who  had  sate  on  the  throne  of  the  Ptolemies, 
and  the  flattery  of  the  cringing  Orientals,  who  in  the 
vicegerent  of  the  emperor  beheld  the  successor  of  their  own 
absolute  sovereigns,  intoxicated  his  vain  mind,  and  he 
suffered  his  subjects  to  erect  statues  in  his  honor,  and  to 
inscribe  his  name  and  exploits  on  the  stones  of  the  pyra- 
mids. In  a  senator  and  a  proconsul  such  conduct  might 
have  given  no  pretext  for  complaint;  but  the  case  of  the 
government  of  Egypt  was  exceptional.  The  jealousy  of  the 
emperor  was  peculiarly  sensitive  in  regard  to  every  act  and 
word  of  his  factor  at  Alexandria ;  and  the  indiscretions  of 
Gallus  were  magnified  into  a  charge  of  treason  against  the 
interests  of  the  republic.  The  senators  hastened  Avith  ready 
adulation  to  declare  him  guilty,  and  desired  his  removal 
from  his  command.  Augustus  appointed  an  officer  to 
supersede  him,  and  required  his  presence  in  Rome.  On  his 
return,  the  loss  of  his  master's  favor,  the  cold  reception  he 
encountered  from  the  courtiers,  the  sense  of  disgrace  and 
the  apprehension  of  severer  punishment  so  affected  his  weak 
mind,  that  he  threw  himself  upon  his  own  sword.  Augustus 
was  shocked  at  this  unexpected  catastrophe  ;  he  rebuked 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  213 

tiie  excessive  zeal  of  the  officious  and  selfish  accusers,  and 
complained  that  he  was  the  only  citizen  who  could  not  be 
angr}^  with  a  friend  without  making  him  an  enem}-. 

The  logical  habit  of  his  mind  is  curiously  exemplified  in 
the  statement  that  he  insisted  in  writing  according,  not  to 
established  orthography,  but  to  spoken  sounds.  On  the  same 
priuciple,  he  was  legitimately  careful  to  avoid  affectation  and 
curious  refinement  in  the  choice  of  words  :  his  chief  care,  it 
is  said,  was  to  express  his  meaning  clearly,  and,  with  this 
view,  he  disregarded  even  grammatical  rales,  and  took  no 
pains  to  avoid  repetitions.  He  amused  himself  with  ridicul- 
ing the  opposite  vices  in  the  style  of  Maecenas,  whose  sen- 
tences he  comi)ared  to  frizzled  ringlets,  and  whose  language, 
he  said,  seemed  steeped  in  myrrli  and  unguents. 

He  was  as  timid  as  a  child  in  all  that  related  to  the  super- 
stitions of  his  time.  lie  trembled  at  thunder  and  lightning, 
not  from  the  vulgar  fear  of  their  fatal  effects,  but  from  hor- 
ror at  their  occult  and  mysterious  causes ;  he  marked  the 
portents  which  seemed  to  attend  on  his  own  career  not  less 
anxiously  than  the  weakest  of  his  subjects  ;  he  considered 
his  own  and  others'  dreams  Avith  painful  solicitude,  and 
observed  all  signs  and  auguries  with  a  serious  curiosity. 

AIYer  all,  the  most  agreeable  feature  in  his  character  is  the 
good-humored  cheerfulness,  which  sprang  apparently  from 
a  deep-seated  contentment,  and  showed  itself,  among  other 
things,  in  the  pleasure  he  took  in  the  simple  sports  of  chil- 
dren, whom  ho  was  always  glad  to  have  about  him  and  to  play 
with,  and  which  overflowed  in  tokens  of  affection  towards  his 
nearest  connexions.  His  ])layful  intercourse  with  Ma?ccnas 
and  Horace,  with  his  daughter  Julia,  with  his  grandsons 
Cains  and  Lucius,  and  even  with  tin;  morose  Tiberius,  was 
the  yearning  of  unaffected  feeling.  If  a  Koman  had  any  true 
sensibility,  it  was  in  his  friendships  that  he  displayed  ir,  and 


214  READI^TGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

towards  his  friends  Augustus  was  both  constant  and  delicate. 
A  generation  Jiad  now  grown  up  to  whom  the  horrors  of  the 
Ijroscriptions  were  only  a  whispered  tale;  the  revolutionary 
triumvir  had  become  in  their  eyes  a  kind  and  genial  old 
man,  grown  gray  in  serving  the  commonwealth,  and  still  the 
guardian  genius  of  the  country  he  had  saved.  That  the  citi- 
zens should  have  forgotten,  under  their  own  vines  and  fig- 
trees,  the  crimes  he  had  committed  against  their  unhappy 
sires,  may  not  be  hard  to  comprehend  :  it  is  more  difficult  to 
understand  the  real  feelings  of  the  man  who  had  done  such 
things,  and  betrayed  to  the  close  of  life  no  uneasy  recollec- 
tion of  them. 

On  the  morning  of  his  death,  being  now  fully  sen- 
sible of  his  approaching  end,  Augustus  inquired  whether  there 
were  any  popular  excitement  in  anticipation  of  it.  Being  no 
doubt  reassured  upon  this  point,  he  called  for  a  mirror,  and 
desired  his  gray  hairs  and  beard  to  be  decently  arranged. 
Then  asking  of  his  friends  around  him  whether  he  had 
played  well  his  part  in  the  drama  of  life,  he  muttered  a  verse 
from  a  comic  epilogue,  inviting  them  to  greet  his  exit  with 
applause.  He  made  some  inquiries  after  a  sick  grandchild 
of  Tiberius,  and  falling  at  last  into  the  arms  of  Livia,  had 
Just  strength,  in  the  moment  of  expiring,  to  recommend  to 
her  the  memory  of  their  long  union. — Merivale. 

TOWN    AND    COUNTRY    LIFE. 

My  prayers  with  this  I  used  to  charge, — 

A  piece  of  land  not  very  large, 

Wherein  there  should  a  garden  be, 

A  clear  spring  flowing  ceaselessly, 

And  where,  to  crown  the  whole,  there  should 

A  patch  be  found  of  growinpr  wood. 

All  this,  and  more,  the  gods  liave  sent. 

And  I  am  heartily  content 


HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  215 

So,  when  from  town  and  all  its  ills 

I  to  my  perch  amoujr  the  hills 

Eetreat,  what  better  theme  to  choose 

Than  satire  for  my  homely  Muse  ? 

No  fell  ambition  wastes  me  there. 

No,  nor  the  south  wind's  leaden  air. 

Nor  Autumn's  pestilential  breath, 

With  victims  feeding;  hungry  death. 

Sire  of  the  morn,  or  if  more  dear 

The  name  of  Janus  to  thine  car, 

Through  whom  whate'er  by  man  is  done, 

From  Life's  first  dawning  is  begun, 

(So  willed  the  gods  for  man's  estate,) 

Do  thou  my  verse  initiate! 

At  Rome  you  hurry  me  away 

To  bail  my  friend  ;  "  Quick,  no  delay, 

Or  some  one — could  worse  luck  befall  you? — 

Will  in  the  kindly  task  forestall  you." 

So  go  I  must,  although  the  wind 

Is  north  and  killingly  unkind. 

Or  snow,  in  thickly  falling  flakes, 

The  wintry  day  more  wintry  makes. 

And  when,  articulate  and  clear, 

I've  spoken  what  may  cost  me  dear, 

Elbowing  the  crowd  that  round  me  close, 

I'm  sure  to  crush  somebody's  toes. 

"  I  say,  where  are  you  jmsliing  to? 

What  would  you  have,  you  madman,  you  ?" 

Bo  flies  he  at  poor  me,  'tis  odds. 

And  curses  me  by  all  his  gods. 

"  You  think  that  you  now,  I  daresay, 

May  ])ush  whatever  stops  your  way, 

Wlien  you  are  to  Maecenas  bound  !  " 

Sweet,  Bweet,  as  honey  is  the  sound, 

I  won't  deny,  of  that  last  speech, 

But  then  no  sooner  do  I  reach 

Tbe  dusky  Esquiline,  than  straight 

Buzz,  buzz  around  me  runs  the  prate 

Of  people  pestering  me  with  cares. 

All  about  other  men's  aflfairs. 

"  To-morrow,  Roscius  bade  me  state, 

lie  trusts  you'll  be  in  court  by  eight ;" 

"The  scriveners,  worthy  Quintus,  pray, 

You'll  not  forget  they  meet  to-day. 


216  READIN^GS     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

Upon  a  point  both  grave  and  new. 

One  touching  the  whole  body,  too." — 

"  Do  get  Maecenas,  do,  to  sign 

This  api)lication  here  of  mine !  " 

"  Well,  well,  I'll  try."     "  You  can  with  ease 

Arrange  it,  if  you  only  please." — 

Close  on  eight  years  it  now  must  be. 

Since  first  Maecenas  numbered  me 

Among  his  friends,  as  one  to  take 

Out  driving  with  him,  and  to  make 

The  confidant  of  trifles,  say, 

Like  this,  "  What  is  the  time  of  day?" 

"  The  Thracian  gladiator,  can 

One  match  him  with  the  Syrian  ?  " 

"  These  chilly  mornings  will  do  harm. 

If  one  don't  mind  to  wrap  up  warm  ;" 

Such  nothings  as  without  a  fear 

One  drops  into  the  chinkiest  ear. 

Yet  all  this  time  hath  envy's  glance 

On  me  looked  more  and  more  askance. 

From  mouth  to  mouth  such  comments  run  ; 

"  Our  friend  indeed  is  Fortune's  son. 

Why,  there  he  was,  the  other  day, 

Beside  Maecenas  at  the  play  ; 

And  at  the  Campus,  just  before. 

They  had  a  bout  at  battledore." 

Some  chilling  news  through  lane  and  street 

Spreads  from  the  Forum.     All  I  meet 

Accost  me  thus — "  Dear  friend,  you're  so 

Close  to  the  gods,  that  you  must  know : 

About  the  Dacians,  have  you  heard 

Any  fresh  tidings?"     "Not  a  word." 

'■'  You're  always  jesting ! "     "  Now  may  all 

The  gods  confound  me,  great  and  small. 

If  I  have  heard  one  word."     "  Well,  well. 

But  you  at  any  rate  can  tell, 

If  Caesar  means  the  lands  which  he 

Has  promised  to  his  troops,  shall  be 

Selected  from  Italian  ground. 

Or  in  Trinacria  be  found?" 

And  when  I  swear,  as  well  I  can. 

That  I  know  nothing,  for  a  man 

Of  silence  rare  and  most  discreet 

They  cry  me  up  to  all  the  street. 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  217 

Thus  do  my  wasted  days  slip  by, 
Kot  witliout  many  a  Avisli  and  sigh. 
When,  when  shall  I  the  country  see. 
Its  woodlands  green, — oh,  when  be  free, 
With  books  of  great  old  men,  and  sleep, 
And  hours  of  dreamy  ease,  to  creep 
Into  oblivion  sweet  of  life, 

Its  agitations,  and  its  strife  ? 

Horace  {Theodore  Martin's  Tmnslation). 


A  Roman  Poet's  City  Home. — The  city  hills  were  as 
yet  iinillumined  by  the  beams  of  the  morning  sun,  and  the 
uncertain  twilight,  which  the  saffron  streaks  in  the  east 
spread  as  harbingers  of  the  coming  day,  was  diffused  but 
sparingly  through  the  windows  and  courts  into  the  apart- 
ments of  the  mansion.  Gallus  (p.  212)  still  lay  buried  in  sleep 
in  his  quiet  chamber,  the  carefully  chosen  position  of  Aviiich 
both  protected  him  against  all  disturbing  noises,  and  pre- 
vented the  early  salute  of  the  morning  light  from  too  soon 
breaking  his  repose.  But  around  all  was  life  and  activity. 
•  From  the  cells  and  chambers  below,  and  the  apartments  on 
the  upper  floor,  there  poured  a  swarming  multitude  of  slaves, 
who  presently  pervaded  every  corner  of  the  house,  hurrying 
to  and  fro,  and  cleaning  and  arranging  with  such  busy  alac- 
rity, that  one  unacquainted  Avith  these  customary  movements 
would  have  supposed  that  some  grand  festivity  was  at  hand. 
A  whole  army  of  house-slaves,  armed  with  besoms  and 
sponges,  under  the  superintendence  of  the  alriensis  began  to 
clear  the  entrance  rooms.  Some  inspected  the  restibiilum, 
to  sec  whether  any  bold  spider  had  spun  its  net  during  the 
night  on  the  cajjital  of  the  pillars,  or  the  groups  of  statuary; 
and  rublted  tlic  gold  and  tortoise-shell  ornaments  of  the 
folding-doors  and  jjosts  at  the  entrance,  and  cleaned  the  dust 
of  the  i)revious  day  from  the  marble  i)avement.  Others  again 
were  busy  in  the  atrium  and  its  adjacent  halls,  carefully 


218  READINGS     IN     II  OMAN     HISTORY. 

traversing  the  mosaic  floor,  and  the  paintings  on  the  walls, 
with  soft  Lycian  sponges,  lest  any  dust  might  have  settled  on 
the  wax-varnish  with  which  they  were  covered.  They  also 
looked  closely  whether  any  spot  appeared  blackened  by  the 
smoke  of  the  lamps ;  and  then  decked  with  fresh  garlands  the 
busts  and  shields  which  supplied  the  place  of  the  waxen 
masks  of  departed  ancestors.  In  the  cavum  cedium,  or  in- 
terior court,  and  in  the  larger  2^eristy.lium,  moi-e  were 
engaged  in  rubbing  with  coarse  linen  cloths  the  polished 
pillars  of  Tenarian  and  Numidian  marble,  which  formed  a 
most  pleasing  contrast  to  the  intervening  statues  and  the 
fresli  green  verdure  of  the  vacant  space  within.  The  Tri- 
cliniarch  and  his  subordinates  were  equally  occupied  in  the 
larger  saloons,  where  stood  costly  tables  of  cedar-wood,  with 
pillars  of  ivory  supporting  their  massive  orbs,  which  had,  at 
an  immense  exj)ense,  been  conveyed  to  Eome  from  the  pri- 
meval woods  of  Atlas.  In  one,  the  wood  was  like  the  beau- 
tifully dappled  coat  of  a  panther;  in  another,  the  spots, 
being  more  regular  and  close,  imitated  the  tail  of  the  pea- 
cock ;  a  third  resembled  the  luxuriant  and  tangled  leaves  of 
the  ojnum  (parsley) ;  each  of  them  seemed  more  beautiful 
and  valuable  than  the  other;  and  many  a  lover  of  splendor 
would  have  bartered  an  estate  for  any  one  of  the  three.  The 
Triclmiarii  cautiously  lifted  up  their  purple  covers,  and  then 
whisked  them  over  with  the  shaggy  gausape,  in  order  to 
remove  any  little  dust  that  might  have  penetrated  through. 
Next  came  the  side-boards,  several  of  which  stood  against  the 
walls  in  each  saloon,  for  the  purpose  of  displaying  the  gold 
and  silver  plate  and  other  valuables.  Some  of  them  Avere 
slabs  of  marble,  supported  by  silver  or  gilded  ram's  feet,  or 
by  the  tips  of  the  wings  of  two  griffins  looking  in  opposite 
directions.  There  was  also  one  of  artificial  marble,  which 
had  been  sawn  out  of  the  wall  of  a  Grecian  temple,  while  the 


, READINGS     IX     ROMAX     HISTORY.  219 

slabs  of  the  rest  were  of  precious  metal.  The  costly  articles 
displayed  on  each  were  so  selected  as  to  be  in  keeping  with 
the  architectural  designs  of  the  apartment. — In  the  tetra- 
sfylus,  the  simplest  saloon,  stood  smooth  silver  vessels  un- 
adorned by  the  art  of  the  embosser,  except  that  the  rims  of 
most  of  the  larger  bowls  were  of  gold.  Between  these  were 
smaller  vessels  of  amber,  and  two  of  great  rarity ;  in  one  of 
which  a  bee,  and  in  the  other  an  ant,  had  found  its  trans- 
parent tomb.  On  another  side  stood  beakers  of  antique 
form,  to  which  the  names  of  their  former  possessors  gave 
their  value,  and  an  historical  importance.  There  was,  for 
instance,  a  double  cup,  which  Priam  had  inherited  from 
Laomedon  ;  another  that  had  belonged  to  Nestor  ;  the  doves 
Avhich  formed  the  handles  were  much  worn, — of  course  by 
Nestor's  hand.  Another  again  was  the  gift  of  Dido  to  ^neas. 
But  the  most  remarkable  of  all  was  a  relic  of  the  keel  of  the 
Argo;  it  was  indeed  only  a  chip,  but  who  could  look  on  and 
touch  this  portion  of  the  most  ancient  of  ships — on  which 
perhaps  even  Minerva  herself  had  placed  her  hand — with- 
out being  transported  in  feeling  back  to  the  days  of  old  ? 
Gallus  himself  was  far  too  enlightened  to  believe  in  the  truth 
of  these  legends,  but  every  one  was  not  so  free  from  preju- 
dice as  he ;  it  was  moreover  the  most  recent  fashion  to  collect 
such  antiquities. 

On  the  other  hand,  in  tiic  Corinthian  saloon  stood  vessels 
of  precious  Corinthian  bronze,  whose  worn  handles  and 
peculiar  smell  sufficiently  announced  their  antiquity ;  to- 
gether with  two  large  golden  drinking  cups,  on  one  of  which 
were  engraved  scenes  from  the  Iliad,  on  the  other  from  the 
Odyssey.  lii-sides  these  there  were  smaller  beakers  and 
bowls  ct^mposed  of  })recious  stones,  either  made  of  one  i)iece 
only  and  adorned  with  reliefs,  or  of  several  cameos  united 
by  settings  of  gold.     Genuine  Murrhina  vases  also, — even  at 


220  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

that  time  a  riddle,  and  according  to  report  imported  from 
the  recesses  of  Partliia, — were  not  wanting. 

The  Eg3'ptian  saloon,  however,  surpassed  the  rest  in 
magnificence.  Every  silver  or  golden  vessel  which  it  con- 
tained was  made  by  the  most  celebrated  gravers,  and 
possessed  higher  value  from  the  beauty  of  its  work- 
manship th;m  even  from  the  costliness  of  its  material. 
There  was  a  cup  by  the  hand  of  Phidias,  ornamented  with 
fishes  that  seemed  only  to  want  water  to  enable  them  to 
swim ;  on  another  was  a  lizard  by  Mentor,  and  so  exact  a 
copy  of  nature,  that  the  hand  almost  started  back  on  touch- 
ing it.  Then  came  a  broad  bowl,  the  handle  of  which  was  a 
ram  with  a  golden  fleece,  more  beautiful  than  that  brought 
by  Phryxus  to  Colchis,  and  upon  it  a  dainty  Cupid.  No 
less  worthy  of  admiration  were  the  ingenious  works  in  glass, 
from  Alexandria ;  beakers  and  saucers  of  superb  molding, 
and  imitating  so  naturally  the  tints  of  the  amethyst  and 
ruby,  as  completely  to  deceive  the  beholder ;  others  shone 
like  onyxes  and  were  cut  in  relief ;  but  superior  to  all  were 
some  of  the  purest  crystal,  and  uncolored.  Still  there  was 
one  object  which,  on  account  of  its  ingenious  construction, 
attracted  mbre  than  anything  else  the  eyes  of  all  spectators. 
This  was  a  bowl  of  the  color  of  opal,  surrounded  at  the 
distance  of  a  fourth  part  of  an  inch  by  an  azure  network, 
carved  out  of  the  same  piece  as  the  vessel,  and  only  connected 
with  it  by  a  few  fine  slips  that  had  been  left.  Beneath  the 
edge  of  the  cup  was  written  the  following  inscription ;  the 
letters  were  green,  and  projected  in  a  similar  manner,  sup- 
ported only  by  some  delicate  props:  Bihe,  vivas  multis  annis. 
How  many  disappointments  must  the  artist  have  experienced 
before  he  accomplished  the  labor  of  making  such  a  vessel, 
and  what  a  price  Gallus  must  have  paid  for  it ! 

Whilst  the  mansion  was  being  thus  cleansed  and  adorned 


READIXGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  221 

tlirouglioiit ;  whilst  the  dispeusaJor  v^as  busied  in  recasting 
the  aceouut  of  the  receipts  and  expenditure  during  the  last 
month,  to  be  ready  for  his  master's  inspection ;  and  the 
cellarius  was  reviewing  his  stock,  and  considering  how  much 
would  supply  the  exigencies  of  the  day  ;  and  the  superior 
slaves  were  engaged,  each  with  his  allotted  task, — the 
vesiibulum  had  already  begun  to  be  filled  with  a  multitude 
of  visitors,  who  came  to  pay  their  customary  morning 
salutation  to  their  patron 

After  his  friends  had  departed,  Gallus  withdrew  into  the 
chamber  where  he  used  daily  to  spend  the  later  hours  of  the 
morning  in  converse  witli  the  great  spirits  of  ancient  Greece, 
or  to  yield  himself  up  to  the  sport  of  his  own  muse.  For 
this  reason,  this  apartment  lay  far  removed  from  the  noisy 
din  of  the  streets,  so  that  neither  the  rattling  of  the  creaking 
wains  and  the  stimulating  cry  of  the  mule-driver,  the 
clarions  and  dirge  of  the  pompous  funeral,  nor  the  brawl- 
ings  of  the  slaves  hurrying  busily  along,  could  penetrate  it. 
A  lofty  window,  through  which  shone  the  light  of  the  early 
morning  sun,  pleasantly  illuminated  from  above  the  moder- 
ate-sized apartment,  the  walls  of  Avhich  were  adorned  with 
elegant  arabesques  in  light  colors,  whilst  between  them,  on 
darker  grounds,  the  luxurious  forms  of  attractive  dancing 
girls  were  seen  sweeping  spirit-like  along.  A  neat  couch, 
faced  with  tortoise-shell  and  hung  with  Babylonian  tapestry 
of  various  colors,  by  the  side  of  which  was  the  scriniuni  con- 
taining the  poet's  elegies — which  were  as  yet  unknown  to 
the  majority  of  the  public,  and  a  small  table  of  cedar-wood 
on  goat's  feet  of  bronze,  comprised  the  whole  of  the  furni- 
ture. 

Immediately  adjoining  lliis  ap.'irtnunit  \v;is  liic  library, 
full  of  Ihe  inosi  precious  treasures  acfpiired  by  (iailus.  chiefly 
in   Alexandria.     'J'here,    in    presses   of    cedar-wood,    placed 


222  READINGS     IN     R  0  M  A  Is^     HISTORY. 

round  the  walls,  lay  the  rolls,  partly  of  parchment,  and 
partly  of  the  finest  Egyptian  papyriis,  each  supplied  with  a 
label,  on  which  was  seen,  in  bright  red  letters,  the  name  of 
the  author  and  title  of  the  book.  Above  these  were  ranged 
the  busts,  in  bronze  or  marble,  of  the  most  renowned 
writers,  an  entirely  novel  ornament  for  libraries,  first 
introduced  into  Eome  by  Asinius  PoUio,  who  perhaps  had 
copied  it  from  the  libraries  of  Pergamus  and  Alexandria. 
True,  only  the  chief  representatives  of  each  separate  branch 
of  literature  were  to  be  found  in  the  narrow  space  available 
for  them ;  but  to  compensate  for  this,  there  were  several 
rolls  which  contained  the  portraits  of  seven  hundred 
remarkable  men.  These  v/ere  the  hebdomades,  or  peplo- 
graphy  of  Varro,  who,  by  means  of  a  new  and  much-valued 
invention,  was  enabled  in  an  easy  manner  to  multiply  the 
collection  of  his  portraits,  and  so  to  spread  copies  of  them, 
with  short  biographical  notices  of  men,  through  the  whole 
learned  world. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  library  was  a  larger  room,  in 
which  a  number  of  learned  slaves  were  occupied  in  tran- 
scribing with  nimble  hand  the  works  of  illustrious  Greek 
and  the  more  ancient  Roman  authors,  both  for  the  supply 
of  the  library  and  for  the  use  of  those  friends  to  whom 
Gullus  obligingly  communicated  his  literary  treasures. 
Others  were  engaged  in  giving  the  rolls  the  most  agi-eeable 
exterior,  in  gluing  the  separate  strips  of  papyrus  together, 
drawing  the  red  lines  which  divided  the  different  columns, 
and  writing  the  title  in  the  same  color;  in  smoothing  with 
pumice-stone  and  blackening  the  edges;  fastening  ivory 
tops  on  the  sticks  round  which  rolls  were  wrapped,  and 
dyeing  bright  red  oi"  yellow  the  parchment  which  was  to 
serve  as  a  wrapper. 

Gallus,  with  Ohresimus  (his  confidential  freedman),  entered 


R  E  A  D  I  X  ft  S     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  22h 

the  study,  where  the  freedman  of  whom  he  was  used  to 
avail  himself  in  his  studies,  to  make  remarks  on  what  was 
read,  to  note  down  particular  passages,  or  to  commit  to 
paper  his  own  poetical  effusions,  as  they  escaped  him,  was 
already  awaiting  him.  After  giving  Chresimus  further 
instructions  to  make  the  necessary  preparations  for  an 
immediate  journey,  he  reclined,  in  his  accustomed  manner, 
on  his  studying  couch,  supported  on  his  left  arm,  his  right 
knee  being  drawn  up  somewhat  higher  than  the  other,  in 
order  to  place  on  it  his  hooks,  or  tablets.  "Give  me  that 
roll  of  poetry  of  mine,  Phoedrus,"  said  he  to  his  freedman ; 
"I  will  not  set  out  till  I  have  sent  the  book  finished  to  the 
bookseller.  I  certainly  do  not  much  desire  to  be  sold  in  the 
Argiletan  taverns  for  five  denarii,  and  find  my  name  hung 
up  on  the  doors,  and  not  always  in  the  best  company;  but 
Secundus  worries  me  for  it,  and  therefore  be  it  so."'  "  He 
understands  his  advantage,"  said  Phaedrus,  as  he  drew  forth 
the  roll  from  the  cedar-wood  chest;  "I  wager  that  his 
scribes  will  have  nothing  else  to  do  for  months,  but  to  copy 
o5  your  Elegies  and  Epigrams." 

Phoidrus  wrote  with  all  possible  rapidity;  he  then  departed 
to  copy  the  poem  more  intelligibly  on  the  roll,  and  to  send 
thither  Philodamus,  whom  his  master  generally  employed  to 
wiite  his  letters.  Philodamus  brought  the  stylus,  the 
wooden  tablets  coated  over  with  wax,  and  what  was  re(piisite 
for  sealing  letters  ;  he  then  took  the  seat  of  Phadrus,  and 
set  down  with  exjiert  hand  the  short  sentences  which  Gallus 
dictated. 

Gallus  having  read  over  the  letters  which  riiilodamus  had 
wntten,  the  slave  fastened  the  tablets  together  with  crossed 
thread,  and  placed  where  the  ends  were  knotted  a  round 
piece  of  wax  ;  while  fJallus  drew  from  his  finger  a  beautiful 
beryl,  on  which  was  engraved  by  the  hand  of  Dioscorides   a 


224  KEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

lion  driven  by  four  araoretts,  breathed  on  it,  to  prevent  the 
tenacious  wax  from  adhering  to  it,  and  then  impressed  it 
deeply  into  the  pliant  mass.  Meanwhile,  Philodamns  had 
summoned  the  slaves  used  for  conveying  letters,  each  of 
whom  received  a  letter. 

Scarcely  were  these  matters  well  concluded,  when  the 
slave  who  had  charge  of  the  time-pieces  entered,  and 
announced  that  the  finger  of  the  dial  was  now  casting  its 
shadow  upon  the  fourth  hour,  and  that  the  fifth  was  about 
commencing.  This  was  the  time  that  Gallus  had  fixed  for 
departure;  he  therefore  hastened  to  leave  the  apartment 
and  allow  himself  to  be  assisted  in  his  traveling  toilet  by 
the  slaves  in  attendance  for  this  purpose. — Becker. 


R  R  A  D  I  X  (1  S     IX      K  O  M  AX      HISTORY.  235 


THE    FIRST    CHRISTIAE^    CENTURY. 

Tiberius,  Caligula,  and  Claudius. — What  were  they 
doiug  at  Rome  duriug  the  thirty-three  years  of  our  Savioi"'s 
sojourn  upon  earth  ?  For  the  first  fourteen  of  them 
Augustus  was  gathering  round  him  the  wits,  aud  poets,  and 
sages,  who  have  made  his  reign  immortal.  After  that  date 
his  successor,  Tiberius,  built  up  by  stealthy  and  slow 
degrees  the  most  dreadful  tyranny  the  world  had  ever  seen — 
a  tyranny  the  results  of  which  lasted  long  after  tlie  founders 
of  it  liad  ex{)ired.  For  from  this  period  maukiud  had  noth- 
ing to  hope  but  from  the  bounty  of  the  Emperor.  If  lie  was 
cruel,  as  so  many  of  thera  w^ere,  he  filled  the  patricians  of 
Bome  with  fear,  and  terrified  the  distant  inhabitants  of 
Thrace  or  Gaul.  Ilis  benevolence,  on  the  other  liand,  was 
felt  at  the  extremities  of  the  earth.  No  wonder  that  every 
one  was  on  the  watch  for  the  first  glimpse  of  a  new  Emperors 
character  and  disposition.  What  rejoicings  in  Ital}',  and 
Greece,  and  Africa,  and  all  through  Europe,  when  a  trait  of 
goodness  was  reported  ;  and  what  a  sinking  of  the  heart 
when  the  old  story  was  renewed,  and  a  monster  of  cruelt/ 
succeeded  to  a  monster  of  deceit !  For  the  fearfulest 
thing  in  all  the  description  of  Tiberius  is  the  duplicity  of 
liis  behavior.  lie  withdrew  to  an  island  in  the  sunniest 
part  of  the  Mediterranean,  and  covered  it  with  gorgeous 
buildings,  and  supplied  it  with  all  the  implements  of  luxury 
and  enjoyment.  From  this  magnificent  retirement  lie 
uttered  a  whisper,  or  made  a  motion  with  his  hand,  which 
displaced  an  Eastern  monarch  from  his  throne,  or  doomed  a 
senator  to  death.  He  was  never  seen,  lie  lived  in  the 
dreadful  privacy  of  some  fabled  deity,  and  was  only  felt  at 


22G  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

the  farthest  cuds  of  his  empire  by  the  uuhappiuess  he 
occasioned;  for  by  murders,  and  imprisonments,  and  every 
species  of  suffering,  men's  hearts  and  minds  were  bowed 
down  beneath  this  invisible  and  irresistible  ojipressor.  Self- 
respect  was  at  an  end,  and  liberty  was  not  even  wished  for. 
The  Emperor  had  swallowed  up  the  empire,  and  there  was 
no  authority  or  influence  beside.  This  is  the  main  feature 
of  the  first  or  Imperial  Century,  that,  wherever  M^e  look, 
we  see  but  one — one  gorged  and  bloated  brutalized  man, 
sitting  on  the  throne  of  earthly  power,  and  all  the  rest  of 
mankind  at  his  feet.  Humanity  at  its  flower  had  culminated 
into  a  Tiberius;  and  when  at  last  he  was  slain,  and  the 
Avorld  began  to  breathe,  the  sorrow  was  speedily  deeper  than 
before,  for  it  was  found  that  the  Imperial  tree  had  blossomed 
again,  and  that  its  fruit  was  a  Caligula. 

This  was  a  person  with  much  the  same  taste  for  blood  as 
his  predecessor,  but  more  open  in  the  gratification  of  it. 
He  did  not  wait  for  trial  and  sentence — those  dim  mockeries 
of  justice  in  which  Tiberius  sometimes  indulged.  He  had  a 
peculiar  way  of  nodding  Avith  his  head,  or  pointing  with  his 
finger;  and  the  executioner  knew  the  sign.  The  man  he 
nodded  to,  died.  For  the  more  distinguished  of  the  citizens 
he  kept  a  box — not  of  snnff,  but  of  some  strong  and 
instantaneous  poison.  Whoever  refused  a  pinch  died  as  a 
traitor,  and  whoever  took  one  died  of  the  fatal  drug.  Even 
the  degenerate  Romans  could  not  endure  this  long,  and 
Chsereas,  an  officer  of  his  guard,  put  him  to  death,  after  a 
sanguinary  reign  of  four  years.  Still  the  hideous  catalogue 
goes  on.  Claudius,  a  nephew  of  Tiberius,  is  forced  upon  the 
unwilling  senate  by  the  spoilt  soldiers  of  the  capital,  the 
Praetorian  Guards.  Colder,  duller,  more  brutal  than  the 
rest,  Claudius  perhaps  increased  the  misery  of  his  country 
by  the  apathy  and  stupidity  of  his  mind ;  and  his  wife,  the 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  227 

infamous  Messaliua,  has  become  a  symbol  of  all  that  is 
detestable  in  the  female  sex.  Some  people,  iiicleed,  in  read- 
ing the  history  of  this  period,  shut  the  book  with  a  shud- 
der, and  will  not  believe  it  true.  They  prefer  to  think 
that  authors  of  all  lands  and  position  have  agreed  to  paint 
a  fancy  picture  of  depravity  and  horror,  than  that  such 
things  were.  But  the  facts  are  too  well  proved  to  be 
doubted.  We  see  a  dull,  uniin])assioned,  moody  despot ; 
fond  of  blood,  but  too  iudolent  to  shed  it  himself,  unless  at 
the  dictation  of  his  fiendish  partner  and  her  friends;  so 
brutalized  that  nothing  amazed,  or  disturbed  him  ;  and  yet 
to  this  frightful  combination  of  ferocity  and  stupidity 
England  owes  its  subjection  to  the  Eomau  power,  and 
all  the  blessings  which  Eoman  civilization — bringing  as 
it  did  the  lessons  of  Christianity  in  its  train — was  cal- 
culated to  bestow.  In  the  forty-fourth  year  of  this 
century,  and  tlie  third  year  of  the  reign  of  Claudius, 
Aulus  Plautius  landed  in  Britain  at  the  head  of  a  power- 
ful army;  and  the  contrast  between  the  central  power 
at  Rome,  and  the  officials  employed  at  a  distance,  con- 
tinued for  a  long  time  the  most  remarkable  circum- 
stance in  the  history  of  the  empire.  Tiberius,  Caligula, 
Claudius,  vied  with  each  other  in  exciting  the  terror  ana 
destroying  the  happiness  of  the  Avorld  ;  but,  in  the  remote 
extremities  of  their  command,  their  generals  disi)layed  the 
courage  and  virtue  of  an  earlier  age.  They  improved  as 
well  as  conquered.  They  made  roads,  and  built  bridges, 
and  cut  down  woods.  Tlu'V  established  military  stations, 
which  soon  became  centers  of  education  and  law.  .  .  .  But 
murder,  and  treachery,  and  unspeakable  iniquity,  went  their 
way  as  usual  in  the  city  of  the  Caesars.  Messalina  was  put 
to  death,  and  another  disgrace  to  womanhood,  in  ihe  person 
of  Agrinpina,  took  her  place  beside  the  phlegmatic  tyrant. 


328  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Tliii-teen  years  liad  passed,  when  the  boimdary  of  human 
patience  was  attained,  and  Rome  was  startled  one  morning 
with  the  joyful  news  that  her  master  was  no  more.  The 
combined  cares  of  his  loving  spouse  and  favorite  physician 
had  produced  this  happy  result — the  one  presenting  him 
with  a  dish  of  deadly  mushrooms,  and  the  other  painting 
his  throat  for  lioarseness  witii  a  poisoned  feather. — White. 

The  Adulations  of  a  Praetor. — After  Tiberius  had 
seen  his  father  restored  to  heaven,  and  had  paid  respect  to 
his  body  with  human  and  to  his  name  with  Divine  honors, 
the  first  act  of  his  administration  was  the  regulation  of  the 
elections,  on  a  plan  left  by  the  deified  Augustus  in  his  own 
handwriting.  At  the  same  time,  my  brother  and  I  had  the 
honor,  as  Ca3sar's  candidates,  of  being  elected  praetors,  in 
the  places  next  to  men  of  the  highest  rank,  and  the  priests; 
and  we  were  remarkable  in  being  the  last  recommended  by 
Augustus,  and  the  first  by  Tiberius  Caesar. 

Of  the  transactions  of  tlie  last  sixteen  years,  which  are 
fresh  in  the  memory  of  all,  who  shall  presume  to  give  a  full 
account  ?  In  that  time,  credit  has  been  restored  to  mercan- 
tile affairs,  sedition  has  been  banished  from  the  forum,  cor- 
ruption from  the  Campus  Martins,  and  discord  from  the 
senate-house;  justice,  equity,  and  industry,  which  had  long 
lain  buried  in  neglect,  have  been  revived  in  the  state ; 
authority  has  been  given  to  the  magistrates,  majesty  to  the 
senate,  and  solemnity  to  the  courts  of  justice;  the  dissen- 
sions in  the  theater  have  been  suppressed,  and  all  men  have 
had  either  a  desire  excited  in  them,  or  a  necessity  imposed 
on  them,  of  acting  with  integrity.  For  this  best  of  princes 
teaches  his  countrymen  to  act  rightly  by  his  own  practice  ; 
and  while  he  is  the  greatest  in  power,  is  still  greater  in 
example. 

Tiberius  Ca>sar  has  had,  and  still  has,  ^lius  Sejanus,  a 


READIXGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  229 

most  excellent  coadjutor  in  all  the  toils  of  government,  a 
man  remarkable  for  fidelity  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  : 
assuming  nothing  to  himself,  and  hence  receiving  every 
honor  ;  always  deeming  himself  inferior  to  other  men's  esti- 
mation of  him;  calm  in  looks  and  conversation,  but  in  mind 
indefatigable,  vigilant.  In  esteem  for  Sejanus'  virtues, 
the  judgment  of  the  public  has  long  vied  with  that  of  the 
prince. 

During  this  period,  Csesar's  sorrows  have  been  aggravated 
by  the  loss  of  his  most  excellent  mother,  a  wooian  who 
resembled  the  gods  more  than  human  beings.* 

0  Jupiter  Capitoliniis,  0  Jupiter  Stator,  0  Mars  Gradivus, 
author  of  the  Roman  name!  0  Vesta,  guardian  of  the  eter- 
nal lire!  0  all  ye  deities  who  have  exalted  the  present 
magnitude  of  the  Roman  empire  to  a  position  of  supremacy 
over  the  world,  guard,  preserve,  and  protect,  I  entreat  and 
conjure  you,  in  the  name  of  the  Commonwealth, our  present 
state,  our  present  peace,  [our  present  Prince!]  And  when 
be  shall  have  completed  a  long  course  on  earth,  grant  him 
successors  to  the  remotest  ages,  and  such  as  shall  have  abili- 
ties to  support  the  empire  of  the  world  as  powerfully  as  we 
have  seen  him  support  it  1 — Vellkfus  Paterculus. 

THE   SIEGE    OF   JERUSALEM,    (a.  p.  70.) 

A  Description  of  Roman  Armies  and  Camps. — Xow 
here  one  cannot  but  admire  the  precaution  of  the  Romans, 

♦  If  we  wonder  at  the  remarkable  flatteries  here  paid  to  Tiberius,  Sejamiu,  and 
Livia,  we  nhould  remember  lliat  in  thone  days  many  an  injudicions  Jtomaii  was 
fluriK  from  tlie  Tarpcian  Rock  for  adinrxe  rcfloctions  on  Imperial  manners,  and  tliat 
at  the  lime  thin  wa^  written  S(OaniiH  wan  in  full  powi.-r.  One  year  more,  and  the 
falli^n  favorite  hud  been  ftrani.'l''d  in  the  depths  of  the  Maniertin(M>i"ifon,  Involving 
in  liiH  ruin,  perhapH,  Vellcin-  liim-elf.— The  depth  of  the  Einjjeror'H  norrow  for  the 
loKt»  of  liii*  nKithcr  may  be  inferred  from  the  fart  that  he  neither  visited  her  in  her 
lat>t  illni'ss,  nor  aiteiiJed  her  obscquie!',  bat  spent  the  day  of  lier  funeral  in  his  UBual 
pleanurcH.— E.  II.  S. 


230  R  E  A  U  I  X  ft  S     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

in  providing  themselves  sncli  household  servants  as  might 
not  only  serve  at  other  times  for  the  common  offices  of  life, 
but  might  also  be  of  advantage  to  them  in  their  wars.  And 
indeed,  if  any  one  does  but  attend  to  the  other  parts  of  tlieir 
military  discipline,  he  will  be  forced  to  confess,  that  their 
obtaining  so  large  a  dominion,  hath  been  the  acquisition  of 
tlieir  valor,  and  not  the  bare  gift  of  fortune  ;  for  they  do  not 
begin  to  use  their  weapons  first,  in  time  of  war,  nor  do  they 
then  put  their  hands  first  into  motion,  while  they  avoided  so 
to  do  in  time  of  peace ;  but  as  if  their  weapons  did  always 
cling  to  them,  they  have  never  any  truce  from  warlike  exer- 
cises ;  nor  do  they  stay  till  times  of  war  admonish  them  to 
use  them  ;  for  their  military  exercises  differ  not  at  all  from 
the  real  use  of  their  arms,  but  every  soldier  is  every  day  exer- 
cised, and  that  with  great  diligence,  as  if  it  were  in  time  of 
war,  which  is  the  reason  why  they  bear  the  fatigue  of  battle 
so  easily:  for  neither  can  any  disorder  remove  them  from 
their  usual  regularity,  nor  can  fear  aflFright  them  out  of  it, 
nor  can  labor  tire  them :  which  firmness  of  conduct  makes 
them  always  to  overcome  those  that  have  not  the  same  firm- 
ness :  nor  would  he  be  mistaken  that  should  call  their 
exercises  unbloody  battles,  and  their  battles  bloody  exercises. 
Nor  can  their  enemies  easily  surprise  them  with  the  sudden- 
ness of  their  incursions  ;  for  as  soon  as  they  have  marched 
into  an  enemy's  land  they  do  not  begin  to  fight  till  they  have 
walled  their  camp  about ;  nor  is  the  fence  they  raise  rashly 
made,  or  uneven ;  nor  do  they  all  abide  in  it,  nor  do  those 
that  are  in  it  take  their  place  at  random ;  but  if  it  happens 
that  the  ground  is  uneven,  it  is  first  leveled  ;  their  camp  is 
also  four  square  by  measure,  and  carpenters  are  ready  in  great 
numbers,  with  their  tools,  to  erect  their  buildings  for  them. 
As  for  what  is  within  the  camp,  it  is  set  apart  for  tents, 
but  the  outward  circumference  hath  the  resemblance  to  a  wall 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  231 

and  is  adorned  with  towers,  at  equal  distances,  where  between 
the  towers  stand  the  engines  for  throwing  arrows,  and  darts, 
and  for  slinging  stones,  and  where  thej  lay  all  other  engines 
that  can  annoy  the  enemy,  all  ready  for  their  several  opera- 
tions. They  also  erect  four  gates,  one  at  every  side  of  the 
circumfereuce,  and  those  large  enough  for  the  entrance  of 
the  beasts,  and  wide  enough  for  making  excursions,  if  occa- 
sion should  require.  They  divide  the  camp  within  into 
streets,  very  conveniently,  and  place  the  tents  of  the  com- 
manders in  the  middle;  but  in  the  very  midst  of  all  is 
the  general's  own  tent,  in  the  nature  of  a  temide,  in  so 
much,  that  it  appears  to  be  a  city  built  on  the  sudden,  with 
its  market-place,  and  place  for  handicraft  trades,  and  with 
seats  for  the  officers,  superior  and  inferior,  where,  if  any  dif- 
ferences arise,  their  causes  are  heard  and  determined.  The 
camp,  and  all  that  is  in  it,  is  encompassed  with  a  wall  round 
about,  and  that  sooner  than  one  would  imagine,  and  this  by 
the  multitude  and  the  skill  of  the  laborers  ;  and,  if  occasion 
require,  a  trench  is  drawn  round  the  whole,  whose  depth  is 
four  cubits,  and  its  breadth  equal. 

AVhen  they  have  thus  secured  themselves,  they  live  to- 
gether l)y  companies,  witli  quietness  and  decency,  as  are  all 
their  other  affairs  managed  with  good  order  and  security. 
Each  company  hatii  also  its  own  wood,  and  corn,  and  Avater 
brought  to  it,  when  it  stands  in  need  of  them;  for  they 
neitlier  sup  nor  dine  as  they  please,  themselves  singly,  but 
all  together.  Their  times  also  for  sleeping,  and  watching, 
and  rising,  are  notified  beforehand,  by  the  sound  of 
trumpets,  nor  is  anything  done  witliout  such  a  signal ;  and 
in  the  nlorninL^  1  lie  soldiers  go  every  one  to  their  centurions, 
and  these  eenturions  to  tlieir  tribunes,  to  salute  them  ;  with 
whom  all  the  superior  officers  go  to  the  general  of  the  wliole 
army,    who    then    gives   them    the    watchword,   ;ind    other 


'S62  liEAJ)lNGS     IN      U  OMAN    HIST  0  RY. 

orders,  to  be  by  tlicm  carried  to  all  that  are  under  their 
command. 

Now  when  they  are  to  go  out  of  tlieir  camp,  tlie  trumpet 
gives  a  sound,  at  which  time  nobody  lies  still,  but,  at  the 
lirst  intimation,  they  take  down  their  tents,  and  all  is  made 
ready  for  their  going  out ;  then  do  the  trumpets  sound 
again,  to  order  them  to  get  ready  for  the  march  :  then  do 
they  lay  their  baggage  suddenly  upon  their  mules,  and  other 
beasts  of  burtiien,  and  stand,  as  at  the  place  of  starting, 
ready  to  marcli ;  when  also  they  set  fire  to  their  camp, 
and  this  they  do,  because  it  will  be  easy  for  them  to  erect 
another  camp,  and  that  it  may  never  be  of  use  to  their 
enemies.  Tlien  do  the  trumpets  give  a  sound  the  third 
time,  in  order  to  excite  those  that,  on  any  account,  are  a 
little  tardy,  that  so  no  one  may  be  out  of  his  rank,  when 
the  army  marches.  Then  does  tlie  crier  stand  at  the 
general's  right  hand,  and  ask  them  thrice,  in  their  own 
tongue,  whether  they  be  now  ready  to  go  out  to  war  or  not? 
To  which  they  reply  as  often,  with  a  loud  and  cheerful 
voice,  saying,  "We  are  ready."  And  this  they  do  almost 
before  the  question  is  asked  them  :  and  they  do  this,  as 
filled  with  a  kind  of  martial  fury,  and  at  the  same  time  that 
they  so  cry  out,  they  lift  up  their  right  hands  also. 

When,  after  this,  tiiey  ar6  gone  out  of  their  camp,  they  all 
march  without  noise,  and  in  a  decent  manner,  and  every  one 
keeps  his  own  rank,  as  if  they  were  going  to  war.  The 
footmen  are  armed  Avith  breastplates  and  head-pieces,  and 
have  swords  on  each  side  ;  but  the  sword  which  is  on  their 
left  side  is  much  longer  than  the  other,  for  that  on  the  right 
side  is  no  longer  than  a  span.  Those  footmen  also,  that 
are  chosen  out  from  the  rest  to  be  about  the  general  himself, 
have  a  lance  and  !)uckler,  but  the  rest  of  the  foot  soldiers 
have  a  spear,  and  a  long  buckler,  besides  a  saw  and  a  basket, 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  233 

a  pick-ax,  aud  an  as,  a  tboug  of  leather,  and  a  hook,  with 
provisions  for  three  days ;  so  that  a  footman  hath  great  need 
of  a  mule  to  carry  his  burthens.  The  horsemen  have  a  long 
sword  on  their  right  sides,  aud  a  long  j^ole  in  their  hand ;  a 
shield  also  lies  by  them  obliquely  on  one  side  of  their  horses, 
with  three  or  more  darts,  that  are  borne  on  their  quivers, 
having  broad  points,  and  not  smaller  than  spears.  They 
have  also  head-pieces,  and  breastplates,  in  like  manner  as 
have  all  the  footmen.  And  for  those  that  are  chosen  to  be 
about  the  general,  their  armor  no  way  differs  from  that  of 
the  horsemen  belonging  to  other  troops  ;  and  he  always 
leads  the  legions  forth,  to  whom  the  lot  assigns  that  employ- 
ment. This  is  the  manner  of  the  marching  and  resting  of 
the  Eomans,  as  also  these  are  the  several  sorts  of  weapons 
they  use.  But  when  they  are  to  fight,  they  leave  nothing 
withont  forecast,  nor  to  be  done  off-hand,  but  counsel  is 
ever  first  taken,  before  any  work  is  begun,  and  what  hath 
been  there  resolved  upon,  is  put  in  execution. 

Now  they  so  manage  the  preparatory  exercises  of  their 
weapons,  that  not  the  body  of  the  soldiers  only,  but  their 
souls  may  also  become  stronger  ;  they  are  moreover  hardencid 
for  war  by  fear,  for  their  laws  inflict  capital  punishment,  not 
only  for  soldiers  running  away  from  their  ranks,  but  for 
slothfulness  and  inactivity,  tjiough  it  be  in  a  lesser  degree; 
and  the  readiness  of  obeying  their  commanders  is  so  great 
that  it  is  very  ornamental  in  peace  ;  but  when  they  come  to 
a  battle,  the  whole  array  is  but  one  body,  so  well  coupled 
together  arc  their  ranks,  so  sudden  are  their  turnings  about, 
so  sharp  their  hearing  as  to  what  orders  are  given  them,  so 
(piick  their  sight  of  the  ensigns,  and  so  nimble  are  tlieii'  hamls 
when  they  set  to  work;  whereby  it  comes  io  ])ass,  that  what 
they  do  is  done  quickly,  and  what  (hoy  suffer,  they  bear  wi(h 
the  greatest  patience. — Josephus. 


234  READINGS     IN     K  O  xM  A  N     HISTORY. 

How  Titus  Marched  to  Jerusalem. — Now,  as  Titus 
was  upon  his  nuirch  into  tlie  enemy's  country,  the  auxilia- 
ries that  were  sent  by  the  kings  marched  first,  having  all  the 
other  auxiliaries  with  them  :  after  whom  followed  those 
that  were  to  prepare  the  roads  and  measure  out  the  camp ; 
then  came  the  commanders'  baggage,  and  after  that  the 
other  soldiers,  who  were  completely  armed  to  support  them  ; 
then  came  Titus  himself,  having  with  him  another  select 
body;  and  then  came  the  pikemen,  after  whom  came  the 
horse  belonging  to  that  legion.  All  these  came  before  the 
engines;  and  after  these  engines  came  the  tribunes  and  the 
leaders  of  the  cohorts,  with  their  select  bodies  ;  after  these 
came  the  ensigns  with  the  eagle ;  and  before  those  ensigns 
came  the  trumpeters  belonging  to  them  ;  next  these  came 
the  main  body  of  the  army  in  their  ranks,  every  rank  being 
six  deep ;  the  servants  belonging  to  every  legion  came  after 
these;  and  before  these  last  their  baggage;  the  mercenaries 
came  last,  and  those  that  guarded  them  brought  up  the 
rear.— JosEPHUS. 

The  Destruction  of  the  City.— "The  days  shall  come 
upon  thee,  that  thine  enemies  shall  cast  a  trench  about  thee, 
and  compass  thee  round,  and  keep  thee  in  on  every  side,  and 
shall  lay  thee  even  with  the  ground,  and  thy  children  within 
thee;  and  they  shall  not  leave  in  thee  one  stone  upon 
another."  So  said  Jesus,  as,  riding  on  a  colt  down  the  leafy 
slope  of  Olivet,  he  looked  through  his  dropping  tears  upon 
Jerusalem.  His  gaze  could  trace  every  turret  and  winding 
of  the  three  walls  with  which  the  city  was  enclosed.  Below 
in  the  deep  valley  ran  the  silver  thread  of  Cedron.  Eight  in 
front,  cutting  the  western  sky,  and  crowning  the  steep  crest 
of  Moriah  with  white  and  gold,  the  countless  spikes  which 
studded  its  burnished  roof  flashing  in  the  sunlight,  rose  the 
magnificent  Temple,  enlarged  and  completed  by  Herod  the 


KEADIXGS     IX     KOMAN     HISTOEY.  235 

Great.  To  the  southwest — highest  of  the  four  hills  on  which 
the  city  lay — towered  the  rocky  Ziou,  hearing  on  its  rugged 
shoulders  the  citadel,  the  royal  palace,  and  the  houses  of  the 
Upper  City.  Behind  the  Temple,  and  north  of  Zion,  was  the 
hill  Acra,  shaped  like  a  horned  moon,  and  covered  with  the 
terraces  and  gardens  of  the  Lower  City  ;  while,  on  another 
slope,  Bezetha,  or  the  New  City,  stretched  further  north 
towards  the  open  country. 

The  aspect  of  the  city  had  changed  but  httle  when,  thirt}'- 
seven  years  later,  the  Roman  eagles  gathered  round  their 
prey.  But,  during  these  years,  the  Jews,  as  if  maddened  by 
the  sacred  blood  for  which  they  had  thirsted  so  fiercely,  had 
been  plunging  deeper  and  deeper  into  sin  and  v,-retchedness. 
At  last,  goaded  by  outrage  and  insult,  they  had  risen  against 
their  Roman  masters;  and  the*  great  Vespasian,  a  general 
trained  in  German  and  British  Avars,  had  been  sent  by  ]!vero 
to  tame  their  stubborn  pride.  Moving  with  his  legions  from 
Antioch  to  Ptolemais,  he  was  there  joined  by  his  son  Titus, 
who  brought  forces  from  Egypt.  Galilee  and  Perea  were 
subdued  with  some  trouble  and  delay;  and  the  conqueror, 
having  drawn  a  circle  of  forts  aroiAid  Jerusalem,  was  at 
Caesarea,  preparing  for  the  last  great  blow,  when  he  heard 
the  news  of  Nero's  death.  The  murder  of  Galba,  the  suicide 
of  Otho,  and  the  seizure  of  Rome  by  the  glutton  Viteliius 
and  his  ])lundering  soldiers,  followed  in  quick  succession. 
The  army  in  Palestine  then  proclaimed  Vespasian  emperor. 
He  hastened  to  secure  Alexandria,  the  second  city  in  the 
empire  ;  and  having  heard,  while  there,  that  Viteliius  was 
dead,  and  that  the  people  of  Rome  were  holding  feasts  in  his 
own  honor,  he  set  out  for  Italy.  So  the  siege  of  Jerusalem 
was  left  to  Titus. 

Mustering  his  forces  at  Ciesarea,  and  dividing  thorn  into 
three  bauds,  he   marched    for  the   doome<l    city.      Arrived 


23G  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

there,  he  fortified  three  camps — one  on  the  nortli,  one  on 
the  west,  and  one,  garrisoned  by  the  10th  Legion,  on  the 
Mount  of  Olives.  Upon  this  last  the  Jews  made  a  sully  as 
the  soldiers  were  digging  the  trenches;  but  they  weie  soon 
beaten  down  the  hill. 

While  the  trumpets  were  blowing  at  Casarea,  and  the 
clang  of  the  Roman  march  was  shaking  the  land,  murder, 
and  outrage,  and  cruel  terror  filled  Jerusalem.  Robbers, 
calling  themselves  Zealots,  had  flocked  in  from  the  country. 
Eleazar,  at  the  head  of  one  set  of  these,  held  the  inner  court 
of  the  Temple.  John  of  Gischala,  another  leader  of  ruffians, 
occupying  ground  somewhat  lower,  poured  constant  showers 
of  darts  and  stones  into  the  holy  house,  often  killing  wor- 
shipers as  they  stood  at  the  very  altar.  In  this  mad  war, 
houses  full  of  corn  were  burned,  and  misery  of  every  kind 
was  inflicted  on  the  wretched  people.  In  despair  they  called 
in  Simon  of  Gerasa  to  their  aid,  and  thus  there  were  three 
hostile  factions  within  the  walls.  The  great  feast  of  the 
Passover  came,  and  the  Temple  was  thrown  open  to  the 
thousands  who  crowded  from  every  corner  of  the  land  to 
offer'  up  their  yearly  sacrifice.  Mingling  in  disguise  with 
the  throng,  with  weapons  under  their  clothes,  John's  party 
gained  entrance  into  the  sacred  court,  and  soon  drove  out 
their  foes.  The  poor  worshipers,  all  trampled  and  bleed- 
ing, escaped  as  best  they  could.  John  remained  master  of 
the  Temple ;  and  the  three  factions  were  reduced  to  two. 

"Within  the  city  there  were  above  23,000  fighting  men — a 
strong  body  if  united.  There  was,  indeed,  a  temporary 
union,  when  they  saw  the  Roman  soldiers  busily  cutting 
down  all  the  trees  in  the  suburbs,  rolling  their  trunks 
together,  and  to  the  top  of  the  three  great  banks  thus 
formed,  dragging  the  huge  siege-engines  of  the  time — rams, 
catapults,  and  balistae. 


HEADINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  237 

The  siege  opened  in  three  places  at  once.  Tlie  Eoman 
missiles  poured  like  hail  upon  the  city ;  but  none  were  so 
terrible  as  the  stones,  sometimes  weighing  a  talent,  which 
were  cast  from  the  east  by  the  10th  Legion.  The  Jewish 
watchmen,  soon  learning  to  know  these  by  their  white  color 
and  tremendous  whiz,  used  to  cry  out,  "  The  son  cometh ; " 
then  all  in  the  way  fell  flat,  and  little  mischief  was  done. 
But  the  Eomans,  not  to  be  tricked,  painted  the  stones  black, 
and  battered  on  more  destructively  than  ever.  The  Jews 
replied  with  some  engines  planted  on  the  wall  by  Simon, 
flung  torches  at  the  Roman  banks,  and  made  an  unavailing 
sally  at  the  Tower  of  Hippicns. 

Three  towers  of  heavy  timber,  covered  with  thick  iron 
plates,  were  then  erected  by  Titus.  Eising  higher  than  the 
walls,  and  carrying  light  engines,  they  were  used  to  drive  the 
Jews  from  their  posts  of  defence.  The  falling  of  one  of 
these  at  midnight  with  a  loud  crash  spread  alarm  through 
the  Roman  camp,  but  it  did  not  last  long.  At  dawn  the 
rams  were  swinging  away,  and  i)ounding  against  the  shaking 
wall,  which  on  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  siege  yielded  to  Nico 
(the  Conqueror),  as  the  most  ponderous  of  the  Roman  engines 
was  called  by  the  Jews.  The  legions,  pouring  through  the 
breach,  gained  the  first  wall. 

Pitching  his  camp  within  tiie  city,  Titus  then  attacked 
the  second  wall,  where  he  was  vigorously  met  both  by  Simon 
and  John.  Sorties  and  wall-fighting  filled  up  every  hour  of 
daylight;  and  both  sides  lay  by  night  in  their  armor, 
snatching  hasty  and  broken  sleep.  In  five  days  the  second 
wall  was  forced.  Titus  passed  within  it  at  the  head  of  1000 
men ;  but  (he  Jews  set  on  him  so  hotly  in  the  narrow  streets 
that  they  soon  drove  him  out  :igaiii.  ]*]asily  elated,  they 
exulted  trrcatly  in  this  success;  l.»ut,  four  days  later,  the 
second  Willi  was  retaken,  and  leveled  to  the  ground. 


238  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Then  followed  a  imuse  of  five  days,  during  which  the 
Eomaus,  having  received  their  subsistence  money,  paraded, 
as  their  custom  was,  in  glittering  armor.  The  wall  and  the 
Temple  roofs  were  paved  with  pale  Jewish  faces,  beholding 
nothing  in  the  splendid  sight  but  terror  and  despair.  The 
attack  was  renewed  at  John's  Monument,  and  the  Tower  of 
Antonia.  At  the  same  time,  Josephus,  a  noble  Jew,  from 
whose  graphic  history  this  sketch  is  drawn,  went  to  the  walls, 
as  he  had  done  before  — as  he  did  more  than  once  again,  to 
plead  with  his  countrymen.  But  all  in  vain,  for  the  Zealots 
were  bent  on  holding  out,  and  slew  such  of  the  people  as 
they  found  trying  to  desert. 

Famine  had  long  before  begun  its  deadly  work.  Mothers 
were  already  snatching  the  morsels  from  their  children's 
lips.  The  robbers  broke  open  every  shut  door  in  search  of 
food,  and  tortured  most  horribly  all  who  were  thought  to 
have  a  hidden  store.  Gaunt  men,  who  had  crept  beyond  the 
walls  by  night  to  gather  a  few  wild  herbs,  were  often  robbed 
by  these  wretches  of  the  poor  handful  of  green  leaves  for 
which  they  had  risked  their  lives.  Yet,  in  spite  of  this,  the 
starving  people  went  out  into  the  valleys  in  such  numbers 
that  the  Eomans  caught  them  at  the  rate  of  500  a  day,  and 
crucified  them  before  the  walls,  until  there  was  no  room  to 
plant,  and  no  wood  to  make,  another  cross.  AVhat  a  fearful 
retribution  for  that  mad  cry,  uttered  some  seven  and  thirty 
years  before, at  Pilate's  judgment-seat:  "His  blood  be  on  us 
and  on  our  chiklren!" 

The  Koraans  then  raised  four  great  banks.  But  these, 
which  cost  seventeen  days'  labor,  were  all  destroyed — two  by 
John,  who  dug  a  mine  below  them,  and  set  fire  to  the  tim- 
bers of  its  roof,  and  the  others  by  three  brave  Jews,  who 
rushed  out  upon  the  engines,  torch  in  hand.  And  then  it 
was  ''pull  Roman,  pull  Jew,"  and  heavy  blows  were  dealt 


EEADIXGS     IX     ROilAX     HISTORY.  239 

round  the  red-hot  rams.  The  Eomans  were  driven  to  their 
camp,  but  the  guard  at  the  gate  stood  tirm  ;  and  Titus, 
taking  the  Jews  in  flank,  compelled  them  to  retreat. 

This  serious  loss  made  Titus  resolve  to  hem  in  the  city 
with  a  wall.  It  was  built  in  the  amazingly  short  time  of 
three  days.  The  attack  was  then  directed  against  the  Tower 
of  Antonia,  which  stood  at  the  north-west  corner  of  the 
Temple,  on  a  slippery  rock,  fifty  cubits  high.  Fonr  new 
banks  were  raised.  Some  Eoraan  soldiers,  creeping  in  with 
their  shields  above  their  heads,  loosened  four  of  the  founda- 
tion stones;  and  the  wall,  battered  at  all  day,  fell  suddenly 
in  the  night.  But  there  was  another  wall  inside.  One 
Sabinus,  a  little  black  Syrian  soldier,  led  a  forlorn  hope  of 
eleven  men  up  to  this  in  broad  noon-day.  gained  the  top, 
and  put  the  Jews  to  flight ;  but  tripping  over  a  stone  he 
was  killed,  as  were  three  of  his  band.  A  night  or  two  after, 
sixteen  Romans  stole  up  the  wall,  slew  the  guards,  and  blew 
a  startling  trumpet  blast.  The  Jews  fled.  Titus  and  his 
men,  swarming  up  the  ruined  wall,  dashed  at  the  entrance 
of  the  Temple,  where,  for  ten  hours,  a  bloody  fight  raged. 
Julian,  a  centurion  of  Bithynia,  attacking  the  Jews  single- 
handed,  drove  them  to  the  inner  court;  but  the  sharp  nails 
in  his  shoes  haA'ing  caused  him  to  fall  with  a  clang  on  the 
marble  floor,  they  turned  back  and  slew  him  with  many 
wounds.  Then,  following  up  their  success,  they  drove  the 
Romans  out  of  the  Temple,  but  not  from  the  Tower  of 
Antonia. 

Strange  omens  liad  foretold  the  coming  doom.  A  star, 
shaped  like  a  sword,  had  hung  for  a  year  over  the  city.  A 
bi'azen  gate  of  the  inner  court,  which  twenty  men  could 
hardly  move,  had  swung  l)ack  on  its  hinges  of  itself. 
Shadows,  resembling  chariots  ami  soldiers  attacking  a  city, 
had  appeared  in  tiie  sky  one  evening  before  sunset.     And  at 


240  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Pentecost,  as  tlie  jDriests  were  going  by  night  into  the  inner 
court,  they  heard  murmuring  voices,  as  of  a  great  crowd, 
saying,  "Let  us  go  hence." 

After  the  Roman  wall  was  built,  the  famine  and  the  plague 
grew  worse.  Young  men  dropt  dead  in  the  streets.  Piles  of 
decaying  corpses  filled  the  lanes,  and  were  thrown  by  tens 
of  thousands  over  the  walls.  No  herbs  were  to  be  got  now. 
Men,  in  the  rage  of  hunger,  gnawed  their  shoes,  the  leather 
of  their  shields,  and  even  old  wisps  of  hay.  Robbers,  with 
wolfish  eyes,  ransacked  every  dwelling,  and,  when  one  day 
they  came  clamoring  for  food  to  tlie  house  of  Mary,  the 
daugiiter  of  Eleazar,  a  high-born  lady  of  Perea,  she  set 
before  them  the  roasted  flesh  of  her  own  infant  son,  whom 
she  had  slain.  "This,"  screamed  she,  "is  mine  own  son. 
Eat  of  this  food,  for  I  have  eaten  of  it  myself."  Brutal  and 
rabid  though  they  were,  they  fled  in  horror  from  the  house 
of  that  wretched  mother. 

At  last  the  daily  sacrifice  ceased  to  be  offered,  and  the 
war  closed  round  the  Temple.  The  cloisters  were  soon 
burned.  Six  days'  battering  had  no  effect  on  the  great 
gates;  fire  alone  conld  clear  a  path  for  the  eagles.  A  day 
was  fixed  for  the  grand  assault;  but  on  the  evening  before, 
the  Romans  having  penetrated  as  far  as  the  Holy  House,  a 
soldier,  climbing  on  the  shoulders  of  another,  put  a  blazing 
torch  to  one  of  the  golden  windows  of  the  north  side.  The 
building  was  soon  a  sheet  of  leaping  flames  ;  Titus,  who 
had  always  desired  to  save  the  Temple,  came  running  from 
his  tent,  but  the  din  of  war  and  the  crackling  flames  pre- 
vented his  voice  from  being  lieard.  On,  over  the  smoking 
cloisters,  trampled  the  legions,  fierce  for  plunder.  The  Jews 
sank  in  heaps  of  dead  and  dying  round  the  altar,  which 
dripped  with  their  blood.  More  fire  was  thrown  upon  the 
hinges  of  the  gate  ;  and  then  no  human  word  or  hand  could 


EEADIXGS     IX     ROMAX     HISTORY.  241 

save  the  bouse  where  God  Himself  had  loved  to  dwell. 
Xever  did  the  stars  of  night  look  down  on  a  more  piteous 
scene.  Sky  and  hill,  and  town  and  valley,  were  all  reddened 
with  one  fearful  hue.  The  roar  of  flames,  the  shouts  of 
Romans,  the  shrieks  of  wounded.  Zealots,  rose  wild  in  the 
scorching  air,  and  echoed  among  the  mountains  all  around. 
But  sadder  far  was  the  wail  of  broken  hearts  which  burst 
from  the  streets  below,  when  marble  wall  and  roof  of  gold 
came  crashing  down,  and  the  Temple  was  no  more.  Then, 
and  only  then,  did  the  Jews  let  go  the  trust — that  God 
would  deliver  His  ancient  people,  smiting  the  Romans  with 
some  sudden  blow. 

The  Upper  City  became  a  last  refuge  for  the  despairing 
remnant  of  the  garrison.  Simon  and  John  were  there  ;  but 
the  arrogant  tyrants  were  broken  down  to  trembling  cowards. 
And  when,  after  eighteen  days'  work,  banks  were  raised, 
and  the  terrible  ram  began  to  sound  anew  on  the  ramparts, 
the  panic-stricken  Jews  fled  like  hunted  foxes  to  hide  in  the 
caves  of  the  hill.  The  eagles  flew  victoriously  to  the  sum- 
rait  of  the  citadel,  while  Jewish  blood  ran  so  deep  down 
Zion  that  burning  houses  M'cre  quenched  in  the  red  stream. 

The  siege  lasted  134  days,  during  which  1,100,000  Jews 
perished,  and  97,000  were  taken  captive.  Some  were  kept 
to  grace  the  Roman  triumph  ;  some  were  sent  to  toil  in  the 
mines  of  Egypt;  some  fought  in  provincial  theaters  with 
gladiators  and  wild  beasts;  those  under  seventeen  were  sold 
as  slaves.  John  was  imprisoned  for  life  ;  Simon,  after  being 
led  in  trium})h,  was  slain  at  Rome. 

It  was  a  gay  holiday,  when  the  emperor  and  his  son, 
crowned  with  huiiel  and  clad  in  purple,  passed  in  triumph 
through  the  crowded  sireets  of  Rome.  Of  the  many  rich 
spoils  adorning  the  pageant,  none  were  gazed  on  with  more 
curious  eyes  than   the  golden  tal)le,  the  candle-stick  with 


'^■ir'-i  K  K  A  J)  1  N  G  S      1  N      i;  U  .\I  A  X       1{  1  S  TO  K  Y. 

seven  branciiing  lamps,  aiivl  the  holy  book  of  the  law, 
rescued  from  the  flames  of  the  Temple.  It  was  the  last  page 
of  a  tragic  story.  The  Mosaic  dispensation  had  come  to  a 
close,  and  the  Jews— homeless  ever  since,  yet  always  pre- 
serving an  indestructible  nationality — were  scattered  among 
the  cities  of  earth  to  be  the  Shylocks  of  a  day  that  is  gone 
by,  and  the  Kothschilds  of  our  own  happier  age.  — Collier. 

The  Triumphal  Return  of  Titus.— So,  when  Titus  had 
had  a  prosperous  voyage  to  liis  mind,  the  city  of  Eome 
behaved  itself  in  his  reception  and  in  meeting  him  at  a 
distance,  as  it  did  in  the  case  of  his  father.  But  what  made 
the  most  sj)lendid  appearance  in  Titus'  opinion  was,  when 
liis  father  met  him,  and  received  him;  but  still  the  multi- 
tude of  the  citizens  conceived  the  greatest  joy  when  they 
saw  them  all  three  together,  as  they  did  at  this  time;  nor 
were  many  days  overpast  when  they  determined  to  have  but 
one  triumph,  that  should  be  common  to  both  of  them,  on 
account  of  the  glorious  exjjloits  they  had  performed,  although 
the  senate  had  decreed  each  of  them  a  separate  triumph  by 
himself.  So,  when  notice  had  been  given  beforehand  of  the 
day  appointed  for  this  pompous  solemnity  to  be  made  on 
account  of  their  victories,  not  one  of  the  immense  multitude 
was  left  in  the  city,  but  everybody  went  out  so  far  as  to  gain 
only  a  station  where  they  might  stand,  and  left  only  such  a 
passage  as  was  necessary  for  those  that  were  to  be  seen  to  go 
along  it. 

Now,  all  the  soldiery  marched  out  beforehand,  by  com- 
panies, and  in  their  several  ranks,  under  their  several  com- 
manders, in  the  night-time,  and  were  about  the  gates,  not 
of  the  upper  palaces,  but  those  near  the  temple  of  Isis;  for 
there  it  was  that  the  emperors  had  rested  the  foregoing 
night.  And,  as  soon  as  ever  it  was  day,  Vespasian  and  Titus 
came  put,  crowned  with  laprel,  and  clothed  in  those  ancient 


Tv  E  A  D  I  X  G  S     IX      i;  0  M  A  N     HISTORY.  243 

purple  habits  which  were  proper  to  tlieir  family,  and  then 
went  as  far  as  Oetaviairs  walks;  for  there  it  was  that  the 
senate,  and  the  principal  rulers,  and  those  that  had  been 
recorded  as  of  the  equestrian  order,  waited  for  them.  'Now 
a  tribunal  had  been  erected  before  the  cloisters,  and  ivory 
chairs  had  been  set  upon  it;  and  when  they  came  and  sat 
down  upon  them,  the  soldiery  made  an  acclamation  of  joy, 
and  all  gave  them  attestations  of  their  valor.  Vespasian 
accepted  these  shouts  ;  but  while  they  were  still  disposed  to 
go  on  in  such  demonstrations,  he  gave  them  a  signal  of 
silence.  And  when  everybody  entirely  held  their  peace,  he 
stood  up,  and  covering  the  greatest  part  of  his  head  with 
his  cloak,  he  put  up  the  accustomed  solemn  prayers  :  the 
like  prayers  did  Titus  put  up  also ;  after  which  i)rayers, 
Vesjoasian  made  a  short  speech  to  all  the  people,  and  then 
sent  away  the  soldiers  to  a  dinner  prepared  for  tliem  by  the 
emperors.  Then  did  he  retire  to  that  gate  which  was  called 
the  Gate  of  Pomp,  because  pompous  shows  do  always  go 
through  that  gate ;  there  they  tasted  some  food,  and  when 
they  had  put  on  their  triumphal  garments,  and  had  offered 
gaerifices  to  the  gods  placed  at  the  gate,  they  sent  the 
trium[)h  forward,  and  marched  tlirough  the  theaters,  that 
they  might  be  the  more  easily  seen  by  the  multitudes. 

Now,  it  is  impossible  to  describe  the  multitude  and 
magnificence  of  the  shows  ;  such,  indeed,  as  a  man  could  not 
easily  think  of,  as  performed  either  l)y  the  labor  of  work- 
men, or  the  variety  of  riches,  or  the  rarities  of  nature. 
Here  was  seen  a  mighty  quantity  of  silver,  and  gold,  and 
ivory,  contrived  into  all  sorts  of  things,  which  did  not 
appear  as  carried  along  in  pompous  show  only,  but,  as  a 
man  may  say,  running  along  like  a  river.  There  were  also 
])recious  stones  that  were  transparent,  some  set  in  crowns  of 
gold,  and  mme  in  other  ouches;  and  of  these  such  avast 


241:  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

number  that  we  could  not  but  tlicnce  leurn  bow  A'jiinly  we 
imagined  any  of  them  to  be  rarities.  The  images  of  the 
gods  were  also  carried,  being  as  well  wonderful  for  their 
largeness,  as  made  with  great  skill  of  workmen ;  nor  were 
any  of  these  images  of  any  other  than  very  costly  materials ; 
and  many  species  of  animals  were  brought,  every  one  in 
its  own  natural  ornaments.  The  men  also,  who  carried 
these  shows,  were  great  multitudes,  and  adorned  with 
pnr])le  garments,  all  over  interwoven  with  gold ;  having 
also  about  them  such  magnificent  ornaments  as  were  both 
extraordinary  and  surprising. 

Eveu  the  great  number  of  the  captives  was  not  unadorned, 
while  tlie  variety  and  the  fine  texture  of  their  garments  con- 
cealed from  sight  the  deformity  of  their  bodies.  But,  what 
afforded  the  greatest  surprise  of  all  was  the  structure  of  the 
pageants  that  were  borne  along  ;  for,  indeed,  he  that  met 
them  could  not  but  be  afraid  that  the  bearers  would  not  be 
ai)le  firmly  enough  to  support  them,  such  was  their  magni- 
tude :  for  many  of  them  were  so  made  that  they  were  three 
or  even  four  stories  one  above  another.  Their  magnificence 
also  afibrded  one  both  pleasure  and  surprise  :  for,  upon  many 
of  them  were  laid  carpets  of  gold.  There  was  also  wrought 
gold,  and  ivory  fastened  about  them  all ;  and  many  resem- 
blances of  the  war,  in  several  ways,  and  a  variety  of  con- 
trivances, affording  a  most  lively  portraiture  of  itself.  For 
there  was  to  be  seen  a  happy  countiy  laid  waste,  and  entire 
squadrons  of  enemies  slain ;  while  some  of  them  ran  away, 
and  some  were  carried  into  captivity,  with  walls  of  great 
altitude  and  magnitude  overthrown,  and  ruined  by  machines, 
with  the  strongest  fortifications  taken,  and  the  walls  of  most 
populous  cities  upon  the  tops  of  hills  seized  on,  and  an  army 
pouring  itself  within  the  walls  ;  as  also  every  place  full  of 
slaughter,  and  supplications  of  the  enemies,  wdien  they  were 


READINGS     IX     R  O  M  A  X     HISTORY.  'iio 

no  longer  able  to  lift  up  their  hands  in  way  of  opposition. 
Fire  also  sent  upon  temples  was  here  represented,  and  houses 
overthrown,  and  falling  upon  their  owners ;  rivers  also,  after 
they  came  out  of  a  large  and  melancholy  desert,  ran  down, 
not  into  a  land  cultivated,  nor  as  drink  for  men,  or  for 
cattle,  but  through  a  land  still  on  fire  upon  every  side;  for 
the  Jews  related  that  such  a  thing  they  bad  undergone  dur- 
ing this  war.  Xow,  the  workmanship  of  these  representa- 
tions was  so  lively  in  the  construction  of  the  things,  that  it 
exhibited  what  had  been  done  to  such  as  did  not  see  it,  as  if 
they  had  been  there  really  present.  On  the  top  of  every  one 
of  these  pageants  was  placed  the  commander  of  the  city  that 
was  taken,  and  the  manner  wherein  he  was  taken.  More- 
over, there  followed  those  pageants  a  great  number  of  ships : 
and,  for  the  other  spoils,  they  were  carried  in  great  plenty. 
But,  for  those  that  were  taken  in  the  temple  of  Jerusalem, 
they  made  the  greatest  figure  of  them  all ;  that  is,  the  golden 
table,  of  the  weight  of  many  talents;  the  candle-stick  also, 
that  was  made  of  gold,  though  its  construction  was  now 
changed  from  that  which  we  made  use  of  :  for  its  middle 
shaft  was  fixed  upon  a  basis,  and  the  small  branches  were 
produced  out  of  it  to  a  great  length,  liaving  the  likeness  of 
a  trident  in  their  position,  and  had  every  one  a  socket  made 
of  brass  for  a  lamp  at  the  to])  of  tliein.  These  lamps  were  in 
number  seven,  and  represented  the  dignity  of  the  number 
seven  among  the  Jews  ;  and,  last  of  all  the  spoils,  was  carried 
the  law  of  the  Jews.  After  these  spoils,  passed  by  a  great 
many  men,  carrying  the  images  of  victory,  whose  structure 
was  entirely  either  of  ivory  or  of  gold.  After  which,  Ves- 
pasian marched  in  the  first  ])lace,  and  Titns  followed  him; 
Doniitian  also  i-ode  along  wilh  tlicni,  and  made  ;i  glorious 
a|»pcaranc(',  and  rode  on  a  horse  that  was  worthy  ol'  ad- 
miration. 


34G  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Now,  the  last  part  of  this  pompous  shoAv  was  at  the  temple  . 
of  Jupiter  Capitolinus,  whither,  when  they  were  come,  they 
stood  still ;  for  it  was  the  Eomans'  ancient  custom,  to  stay 
till  somebody  brought  the  news  that  the  general  of  the 
enemy  was  slain.  This  general  was  Simon,  the  son  of 
Gioras,  who  had  been  led  in  this  triumph  among  the  cap- 
tives, and  had  withal  been  tormented  by  those  that  drew  him 
along;  a  rope  had  also  been  put  upon  his  head,  and  he  had 
been  drawn  into  a  proper  place  in  the  forum,  for  the  law  of 
the  Komans  required  that  malefactors  condemed  to  die 
should  be  slain  there.  Accordingly,  when  it  was  related  that 
there  was  an  end  of  him,  and  all  the  people  had  set  up  a 
shout  for  joy,  they  then  began  to  offer  those  sacrifices  which 
they  had  consecrated  in  the  prayers  used  in  such  solemni- 
ties. When  they  had  finished,  they  went  away  to  the  palace. 
And,  as  for  some  of  the  spectators,  the  emperors  entertained 
them  at  their  own  feast;  and  for  all  the  rest,  there  were 
noble  preparations  made  for  their  feasting  at  home;  for  this 
was  a  festival  day  to  the  city  of  Eome,  as  celebrated  for  the 
victory  obtained  by  their  army  over  their  enemies. 

After  these  triumphs  were  over,  and  after  the  affairs  of 
the  Romans  were  settled  on  the  surest  foundations,  Vespasian 
resolved  to  build  a  temple  to  Peace,  which  was  finished  in  so 
short  a  time,  and  so  glorious  a  manner,  as  was  beyond  all 
human  expectation  and  opinion :  for,  having  now  by  Provi- 
dence a  vast  quantity  of  wealth,  besides  what  he  had  formerly 
gained  in  his  other  exploits,  he  had  this  temple  adorned  with 
pictures  and  statues  and  all  such  rarities  as  men  aforetime 
used  to  wander  all  over  the  habitable  world  to  see ;  he  also 
laid  up  therein  those  golden  vessels  and  instruments,  that 
were  taken  out  of  the  Jewish  temple,  as  ensigns  of  his  glory. 
But  he  gave  order  that  they  should  lay  up  their  law,  and  the 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  247 

purple  vails  of  the  holy  place,  in  the  royal  palace  itself,  and 
he  kept  them  there. — Josephus. 

THE    COLOSSEUM. 

Of  all  the  ruins  in  Rome  none  is  at  once  so  beautiful,  so 
imposing,  and  so  characteristic  as  the  Colosseum.  Here 
throbbed  the  Eoman  heart  in  its  fullest  pulses.  Over  its 
benches  swarmed  the  mighty  population  of  the  central  city 
of  the  world.  Here  emperor,  senators,  knights,  and  soldiers, 
the  lowest  populace  and  the  proudest  citizens,  gazed  together 
on  the  bloody  gladiatorial  games,  shouted  together  as  the 
favorite  won,  groaned  together  fiercely  as  the  favorite  fell, 
and  startled  the  eagles  sailing  over  the  blue  vault  above  with 
their  wild  cries  of  triumph.  Here  might  be  heard  the  trum- 
peting of  the  enraged  elephant,  the  savage  roar  of  the  tiger, 
the  peevish  shriek  of  the  grave-rifling  hyena.  The  sand  of 
this  arena  drank  alike  the  blood  of  gladiator,  beast,  and  mar- 
tyred Christian  virgin.  Rome — brutal,  imperial  Rome — built 
in  her  days  of  pride  this  mighty  amphitheater,  and,  outlast- 
ing all  her  works,  it  still  stands,  the  best  type  of  her  grandeur 
and  brutality.  The  imperial  palaces  are  almost  level  with 
the  earth.  Over  the  pavement  where  once  swept  the  purple 
robes  now  slips  the  gleaming  lizard,  and  in  the  indiscrim- 
inate ruins  of  these  splendid  halls  the  contadino  plants  his 
potatoes  and  sells  [ov  a  jiaul  the  oxidized  coin  which  once 
may  have  ])aid  Ibe  entrance  fee  to  the  great  amphitheater. 
The  golden  house  of  Xero  is  gone.  The  very  Forum  where 
Cicero  delivered  his  immortal  orations  is  almost  obliterated, 
and  antiquarians  (|Uiirrol  over  the  few  columns  that  remain. 
But  the  Colosseum  still  stands;  noble  and  beautiful  even  in 
its  decay. 

But  what  acliaiige  has  conic  over  it  since  the  bloody  scenes 


348  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY, 

of  the  CcBsars  were  enacted  !  Thousands  of  beautiful  flowers 
now  bloom  in  its  ruined  arches,  tall  plants  and  shrubs  wave 
across  the  open  spaces,  and  Nature  has  healed  over  the 
wounds  of  time  with  delicate  grasses  and  weeds.  Wliere, 
through  the  podium  doors,  wild  beasts  once  rushed  into  the 
arena  to  tear  the  Christian  martyrs,  now  stand  the  altars  and 
stations  that  are  dedicated  to  Christ.  In  the  summer  after- 
noon the  air  above  is  thronged  with  twittering  swallows  : 
and  sometimes,  like  a  reminiscence  of  imperial  times,  far  up 
in  the  blue  height,  an  eagle,  planing  over  it  on  wide-spread 
motionless  wings,  sails  silently  along. 

As  you  dream  over  tliis  change,  the  splendor  of  sunset 
blazes  against  tlie  lofty  walls,  and  transfigures  its  blocks  of 
travertine  to  brown  and  massive  gold;  the  quivering  stalks 
and  weeds  seem  on  fire ;  the  flowers  drink  in  a  glory  of  color, 
and  show  like  gems  against  the  rough  crust  of  their  setting ; 
rose  clouds  hang  in  the  open  vault  above,  under  which  swift 
birds  flash  incessantly,  and  through  the  shadowed  arches 
you  see  long  molten  bars  of  crimson  drawn  against  a  gor- 
geous sky  beyond.  Slowly  the  great  shadow  of  the  western 
wall  creeps  along  the  arena ;  tlie  cross  in  the  center  blazes 
no  longer  in  the  sun;  it  reaches  the  eastern  benches,  climbs 
rapidly  up  the  wall,  and  the  glory  of  sunset  is  gone.  Twi- 
light now  swiftly  drawls  its  veil  across  the  sky,  the  molten 
clouds  grow  cool  and  gray,  the  orange  refines  into  citron  and 
pales  away  to  tenderest  opaline  light,  and  stars  begin  to  peer 
through  the  dim  veil  of  twilight.  Shadows  deepen  in  the 
open  arena,  block  up  the  arches  and  galleries,  confuse  the 
lines  of  the  benches,  and  shroud  its  decay.  You  rise  and 
walk  musingly  into  the  center  of  the  arena,  and,  looking- 
round  its  dim,  vast  circumference,  you  suddenly  behold  the 
benches  as  of  old  thronged  wdth  their  myriads  of  human 
forms— the  ghosts  of  those  who  once  sat  there.     That  ter- 


READINGS     T  X     E  0  M  A  N     H  I  S  T  0  K  Y .  249 

rible  circle  of  eyes  is  sliiuing  at  you  with  a  ghastly  expression 
of  cruel  excitement.  You  hear  the  strange,  exciting  hum  of 
confused  voices,  and  the  roar  of  wild  beasts  in  the  caverns 
below.  You  are  yourielt"  the  gladiator,  wlio  must  die  to  make 
a  Roman  holiday,  or  the  martyr  who  Avaits  at  the  stake  for 
the  savage  beasts  that  are  to  rend  you.  A  shudder  comes 
over  you,  for  the  place  has  magnetized  you  with  its  old  life  ; — 
you  look  hurriedly  round  to  seek  flight,  when  suddenly  you. 
hear  a  soprano  voice  saying,  "Fran9ois,  where  did  the  Vestal 
Virgins  sit?"  and  you  wake  from  your  dream. 

Such  is  the  Colosseum  at  the  present  day.  Let  us  go 
back  into  the  past,  and  endeavor  to  reconstruct  it. 

In  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  the  great  Julius,  the 
stormy  populace  of  Rome  has  no  amphitheater,  and  its 
gladiatorial  games  and  wild  beast-fights  take  place  in  the 
Forum,  whither  the  people  throng  and  crowd  the  temporary 
seats  which  enclose  a  small  arena.  This  is  soon  felt  to  he 
insufficient,  and  Julius  erects  in  the  Campus  Martins  a  great 
wooden  structure,  to  which  is  given  the  name  of  amphi- 
theatrum.  In  the  reign  of  Augustus,  this  wooden  amphi- 
theater gives  way  to  one  of  stone,  which  at  the  instance  of 
the  emperor  is  built  in  the  Campus  Martins  by  Statilius 
Taurus.  This  is  too  small,  however,  to  satisfy  the  Avishes  of 
the  people,  and  Augustus  thinks  at  one  time  of  building  one 
still  larger  on  the  very  s})ot  now  occupied  by  the  Colosseum ; 
but,  among  his  various  schemes  of  embellishing  the  city,  this 
is  abandoned.  Tiberius  does  notliing.  Caligula  begins  to 
build  a  large  stone  ampliithcater,  but  dies  before  it  makes 
much  i)rogress,  and  it  is  not  continued  by  his  successor. 

Nero  builds  a  tciniiorary  amphitheater  of  wood  in  the 
Campus  Martins,  where  are  rei)rcsented  those  remarkable 
games  at  Avhich  he  is  not  only  a  spectator  but  an  actor. 
Here  at  times  lie  may  be  seen  lounging  on  the  sugr/eslus  in 


250  READINGS     IN     KOMAN     HISTOKY. 

loosely-flowing  robes  of  delicate  purple,  his  head  crowned 
with  a  garland  of  flowers,  and  looking  so  like  a  woman  in  his 
dress,  that  you  might  easily  be  deceived  as  to  his  sex,  were 
it  not  for  that  cruel  face  with  its  hawk  nose  and  small 
fierce  eyes,  that  looks  out  under  the  flowers.  In  this  arena 
he  i)l:iys  his  harp,  recites  poetry,  and  acts,  winning  golden 
opinions  from  the  populace.  Here,  at  other  times,  half- 
naked  and  armed  like  a  gladiator,  he  fights,  and  woe  be  to 
liim  who  dares  to  draw  imi)erial  blood  !  If  we  could  look  in 
at  one  of  the  games  given  in  this  amphitheater,  we  should 
see  not  only  the  emperor  playing  the  gladiator's  part  on  the 
arena,  but  at  his  side,  and  fighting  against  each  other, 
at  times  no  less  than  four  hundred  senators  and  six  hundred 
Eoman  knights.  Meanwiiile,  he  has  built  his  golden  house 
on  the  Palatine  Hill,  with  its  gorgeous  halls,  theaters,  and 
corridors,  thronged  with  marble  statues ;  and  at  its  base  is 
an  artificial  lake,  fed  by  pure  waters  brought  from  the  mount- 
ains, in  which  at  times  he  celebrates  his  naval  combats. 
This  occupies  the  very  spot  on  which  the  Colosseum  is  after- 
wards to  be  built,  but  it  is  only  a  lake  during  the  reigns  of 
Galba,  Otho,  and  Yitellius.  When  Nero  sets  the  torch  to 
Eome,  among  the  many  buildings  which  are  consumed  is 
the  old  amphitheater  of  Statilius  Taurus,  and  Eome  has  left 
only  that  of  the  Campus  Martins. 

But  when  Titus  and  Vespasian  return  after  the  conquest 
of  Jerusalem,  enriched  with  spoils,  a  great  change  takes 
place.  Then  it  is  that  the  Lake  of  Nero  is  drained,  and  out 
of  the  Jewish  captives  who  have  been  brought  to  Eome  to 
grace  the  imperial  triumph,  twelve  thousand  are  driven, 
under  the  smack  of  the  whip,  to  lay  the  first  stones  of  the 
Amphitheatrum  Flavium,  which  now  goes  by  the  name  of 
the  Colosseum.  For  long  years  these  unhappy  wretclies  toil 
at  their  work ;  but  wlien  they  have  reached  the  third  tier 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN      HISTORY.  iiol 

of  seats,  Vespasian  dies.  Titus  then  continues  the  construc- 
tion, and  dedicates  the  amphitheater  (80  a,  d.),  at  which 
time  the  games  last  for  one  hundred  days,  and  fifty  wild 
heasts  are  killed  every  day. 

Under  Domitian,  the  building  is  at  last  finished,  and  a 
magnificent  structure  it  is.  Looking  at  it  from  the  outside, 
we  behold  a  grand  elevation  of  four  stories,  built  of  enor- 
mous blocks  of  travertine.  The  lower  story  is  Doric ;  the 
second,  Ionic ;  the  third,  Corinthian  ;  and  the  fourth, 
Composite;  the  lower  three  being  composed  of  arches  with 
engaged  columns,  and  the  upper  being  a  solid  wall  pierced 
with  square  openings,  and  faced  by  pilasters.  High  up 
against  the  blue  sky  is  drawn  the  curved  cornice  of  its  sum- 
mit, with  huge  projecting  brackets  on  which  the  poles  sup- 
porting the  velarium  (awning)  are  fixed.  The  two  middle 
rows  of  arches  are  thronged  with  marl)le  statues,  and  over 
the  principal  entrance  is  a  great  triumphal  car  drawn  by 
horses.  Just  before  it  is  the  '*  mcta  sudans,"  over  whose 
simple  cone,  fixed  upon  a  square  base,  the  water  oozes 
through  a  thousand  perforated  holes,  and  streams  into  a 
basin  below.  Above,  on  the  Palatine,  are  the  splendid 
porticoes  and  pillars  of  the  Golden  House,  with  its  green 
lianging  gardens,  and  beyond,  on  the  Via  Sacra,  is  the  grand 
triumphal  arch  of  Titus,  and,  afterwards,  of  Trajan. 

It  is  a  holiday,  and  games  are  to  be  given  in  the  amphi- 
theater. The  world  of  Eome  is  flocking  to  it  from  all  quar- 
ters. Senators  and  knights,  witti  their  body-guards  of  slaves 
and  gladiators;  soldiers  glittering  with  silver  and  gold; 
youths  with  their  ])fdag(igues;  women,  artisans  and  priests; 
companies  of  gladiators  marshalled  by  Lanisfa^  ;  cohorts  with 
flashing  bucklers  and  swords,  and  dense  masses  of  freedmen, 
slaves,  and  the  common  populace,  are  pouring  down  the  Via 
Sacra,  and  filling  the  air  with  uproar.     Shouts  of  laughter 


252 


KE  A  DINGS     IN     EOMAN     HISTOKT. 


and  cheering  mingle  confusedly  with  the  screams  of  women 
and  the  clash  of  swords.  At  times  the  clear,  piercing  shriek 
of  a  trumpet  or  the  brazen  clash  of  music  rises  above  this 
simmering  cauldron  of  noise,  and  here  and  there,  looking  up 
the  human  river  that  pours  down  the  slope  of  the  Via  Sacra, 

you  see  gray 
sheaves  of 
bristling 
spears  lifted 
liigh  above 
the  crowd,  or 
here  and  there 
a  golden  eagle 
that  gleams 
and  wavers  in 
the  sun,  where 
some  Eoman 
legion  sharply 
m  arches 
through  the 
loitering  mass 
of  people. 
We  push  along 
v/  i  t  h  the 
crowd,  and  soon  we  arrive  at 
the  amphitheater,  where  we 
pause  and  struggle  vainly  te  read  the  Jihellum,  or  program, 
which  the  editor,  or  exhibitor,  has  affixed  to  the  walls,  to 
inform  the  public  of  the  names  of  tlie  gladiators,  and  the 
different  games  and  combats  of  the  day.  The  majestic  por- 
ticoes which  surround  the  whole  building  are  filled  with 
swarms  of  people,  some  lingering  and  lounging  there  till  the 
time  shall  come- for  the  games  to  begin,  or  looking  at  the 


THE    ARCH    OF   TITUS, 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  253 

exquisite  designs  iu  stucco  with  which  they  are  adorned,  aud 
some  crowding  along  the  vomitorioE,  which  ac  regular  dis- 
tances lead  uj)  to  the  seats.  Here  we  procure  our  tickets  for 
u  numbered  seat,  and  soon  push  n\)  the  steps  and  come  into 
the  interior  circle  of  the  mighty  amphitheater,  glad  enough 
at  last  to  be  jostled  no  longer,  and,  under  the  direction  of  a 
locarius,  to  get  our  seat.  Already  the  lofty  ranges  of  benches 
are  beginning  to  be  filled,  and  at  a  rough  guess  there  must 
be  even  now  some  50,000  persons  there.  But  many  a  range 
is  still  empty,  and  we  know  that  87,000  persons  can  be  seated, 
while  there  in  standing  room  for  22,000  more.  The  huge 
velarium  is  bellying,  sagging,  and  swaying  above  our  heads, 
veined  with  cords,  and  throwing  a  transparent  shadow  over 
the  whole  building.  How  it  is  supported,  who  can  tell  ? 
But  we  may  congratulate  ourselves  that  we  are  on  the  shady 
feidc,  where  the  sun  does  not  beat ;  for  the  mad  emperor, 
when  the  games  have  not  been  fierce  and  bloody  enough  to 
please  him,  has  many  a  time  ordered  a  portion  of  the  vela- 
rium to  be  removed,  so  as  to  let  the  burning  sun  in  upon 
those  who  wore  unlucky  enough  to  be  opposite  to  it,  and  has 
then  prohibited  any  one  from  leaving  his  place  under  penalty 
of  instant  death. 

Looking  down,  we  see  surrounding  the  arena  a  wall  about 
15  feet  in  height,  faced  with  rich  marl)k's,  and  intended  to 
guard  the  audience  against  the  wild  beasts.  This  is  some- 
times called  the  podium,  though  the  term  is  more  appropri- 
ately applied  to  the  tcirace  on  top  of  the  wall,  which  extends 
in  front  of  the  lynches,  aud  is  railed  round  by  a  trellis-work. 
This,  in  the  amphitheater  of  Nero,  was  made  of  bronze,  but 
Carinns  afterwards  substituted  golden  coixls,  which  were 
knott<'d  t/)gether  at  (heir  intersections  with  amber.  Tliere  is 
the  seat  of  honor,  and  three  or  four  ranges  of  elniirs  are  set 
apjirt   for   ix-r.-ons  entitled   to  the   di.-linrlicjii   of  the  riinilc 


254  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

chair.  Those  taking  their  seats  in  them  now  are,  or  hare 
been,  praetors,  consuls,  curules,  rediles  or  censors.  There, 
too,  is  the  Flamen  Dialis.  Opposite  to  the  preetors,  that 
group  of  white-robed  women,  also  in  the  podium,  is  the  Vestal 
Virgins ;  and  there,  on  the  raised  tribune,  is  the  seat  of  the 
editor  who  exhibits  the  games. 

Above  the  podium  are  three  tiers,  called  the  mceniana, 
which  are  separated  from  each  other  by  long  ])latforms  run- 
ning round  the  whole  building  and  called  prvecinctiones. 
The  first  of  these,  consisting  of  fourteen  rows  of  stone  and 
marble  seats,  is  for  the  senators  and  equestrian  orders,  and 
they  have  the  luxury  of  a  cushion  to  sit  upon.  The  second 
tier  is  for  the  jt?07?MZ?«,<?,  and  the  third,  Avhere  there  are  only 
wooden  benches,  is  occupied  by  the  pullati,  or  common 
people  of  the  lower  classes.  Above  these  is  a  colonnade  or 
long  gallery  set  apart  for  women,  who  are  admitted  when 
there  is  to  be  no  naked  figiiting  among  the  gladiators  ;  but 
as  yet  the  seats  are  empty,  for  the  women  are  not  admitted 
before  the  fifth  hour.  On  the  middle  seats,  where  the  plebe- 
ians sit,  there  is  not  a  single  person  in  black,  for  this  was 
prohibited  by  Augustus  Caesar;  and  it  was  he  also  who 
ordered  that  the  ambassadors  should  not  stand,  as  they  used 
to  do,  in  the  orchestra  or  podium,  and  that  the  young  nobles 
should  always  be  accompanied  by  their  pedagogues. 

While  we  are  looking  round  we  can  hear  the  roar  of  the 
wild  beasts,  which  are  kept  in  great  caves  under  the  pave- 
ment of  the  arena;  and  sometimes  we  see  their  fierce  glaring 
faces  through  the  arched  doors  with  which  the  walls  of  the 
podium  are  pierced.  They  are  now  protected  by  portcullises, 
which  later  will  be  drawn  up  by  cords. 

The  arena  where  the  combats  will  take  place,  is  sunken 
from  13  to  15  feet  below  the  lowest  range  of  seats,  and  is 
fenced  around  with  wooden  rollers  turning  in  their  sockets, 


READINGS     IN      KOMAX      HISTORY.  255 

and  placed  horizontally  against  the  wall,  so  as  to  revolve 
under  any  wild  beast,  iu  case  he  should  attempt  to  reach  the 
audience  by  leaping  over  the  boundary  wall.  For  public 
security,  all  around  the  arena  are  the  euripi,  or  ditches, 
built  by  Caesar,  and  flooded  so  as  to  protect  the  spectators 
a2;ainst  the  attacks  of  elephants,,  which  are  supposed  to  be 
afraid  of  water.  The  floor  of  the  arena  was  originally  strewn 
with  yellow  sand  (and  from  this  its  name  was  derived),  so  as 
to  afford  suj-e  footing  to  the  gladiators  ;  but  Caligula  sub- 
stituted borax,  and  Nero  added  to  the  borax  the  splendid 
red  of  Cinnabar,  with  which  it  now  is  covered.  Underneath 
this  is  a  solid  pavement  of  stones  closely  cemented  so  as  to 
hold  water;  and  when  naval  battles  are  given,  there  arc 
pipes  to  flood  it,  so  as  to  form  an  artificial  lake  on  which 
galleys  may  float.  Near  the  northern  entrance  you  will  see 
a  flight  of  broad  stairs,  through  which  great  machines  are 
sometimes  introduced  into  the  arena. 

The  air  is  fdled  with  perfumes  of  saffron  infused  in  wine,  and 
balsams,  and  costly  tinctures,  and  essences,  which  are  carried 
over  the  building  in  concealed  conduits,  and  ooze  out  ovei 
the  statues  through  minute  orifices,  or  scatter  their  spray 
into  the  air.  There  is  now  a  sudden  stir  among  the  people, 
and  the  amphitheater  resounds  with  the  cry  of  ^^ Ave 
Imperalor  "  as  the  emperor  in  his  purple  robes,  surrounded 
by  his  lictors  and  imperial  guard,  enters  and  takes  his  seat 
on  the  elevated  chair  called  the  syggesius  opposite  to  the 
main  entrance.  Then  sound  the  trumpets,  and  the  gladi:i- 
tors  who  are  to  fight  enter  the  arena  in  a  long  ])rocession, 
and  make  the  tour  of  the  whole  amphitlieatcr.  They  are 
now  matched  in  pairs,  ami  (heir  swords  are  examined  by 
tjje  editor,  and  even  l)y  the  emperor,  to  see  if  they  are  sharp 
and  in  good  condition.  K  pr(Blnsi<),ov  ^hnvn  battle,  follows, 
and  at  la.st  the  trumpet  again  sounds,  and  the  first  on  the 


25G  READINGS     1  \      U  (>  M  A  N      U  I  S  T  O  K  Y , 

list  advance  to  salute  the  emperor  before  engaging  in  their 
desperate  contest.* 

The  famous  picture  of  Gerome,  the  French  artist,  gives 
one  a  vivid  notion  of  what  the  spectacle  in  the  Colosseum 
was  at  this  moment.  The  fat,  brutal,  overfed  figure  of 
Domitian  is  seen  above  in  the  impei'ial  chair,  imd  in  the 
arena  below  a  little  group  of  gladiators  is  pausing  before  him 
to  salute  him  with  their  accustomed  speech:  ''Ave,  Im- 
perafor,  morituri  te  ^alntant ! ''  The  benches  are  crowded 
row  above  row  with  spectators,  eager  for  the  struggle  that  is 
to  take  place  between  the  new  combatants.  They  have 
already  forgotten  the  last,  and  heed  not  the  dead  bodies  of 
man  and  beast,  that  slaves  are  now  dragging  out  of  the  arena 
with  grappling-irons.  A  soft  light,  filtering  through  the 
huge  tent-like  velarinm  overhead,  illumines  the  vast  circle 
of  the  amphitheater.  Thousands  of  eager  eyes  are  fixed  on 
the  little  band,  wlio  now  only  wait  the  imperial  nod  to  join 
battle,  and  a  murmurous  war  of  impatience  and  delight 
seems  to  be  sounding  like  the  rea  over  the  vast  assembly. 
Looking  at  this  picture,  one  can  easily  imagiue  the  terrible 
excitement  of  a  gladiatorial  show,  when  100,000  hearts  were 
beating  with  the  combatants,  and  screams  of  rage  or  triumph 
saluted  the  blows  that  drank  blood,  or  the  cruel  ''upturned 
thumb"  (p.  102)  announced  his  fate  to  the  wretched  victim 
as  he  sank  in  the  arena,  f 

*  In  the  museum  of  San  Giovanni  in  Laterano  is  a  larire  mosaic  pavement,  taken 
from  tlie  Baths  of  Caracalla,  on  which  are  represented  colossal  heads  and  figures  of 
some  of  the  most  celebrated  gladiators  of  the  day.  Their  brutal  and  bestial 
physiognomies,  their  huge  overdeveloped  muscles,  and  Atlantean  shoulders,  their 
low  flat  foreheads  and  noses,  are  hideous  to  behold,  and  give  one  a  more  fearful  and 
living  notion  (  f  the  horror  of  ihose  bloody  games  to  which  they  were  trained,  than 
any  description  in  words  could  convey.  They  make  one  believe  that  of  all  animals, 
none  can  be  made  so  brutal  as  man.  It  is  very  probable  that  some  of  these  were 
the  favorite  gladiators  of  Caracalla,  and  made  a  part  of  the  imperial  retinue.— Stort. 

+  The  manner  in  which  Christinn  martyrs  were  exposed  to  the  wild  beasts  is 
shown  by  some  small  rilievi  in  bronze  found  in  the  catacombs,  where  the  lions  are 
represented  as  chain^id  to  a  pilaster,  and  the  martyrs  lie  naked  and  unarmed  at  their 


R  E  A  I)  I  N'  Ct  S      IX      U  OMAN'      HISTORY.  2o  i 

On  the  Kalends  of  Jainuirv,  in  the  year  404,  while,  in  the 
presence  of  an  immense  crov.d  of  spectators,  the  gladiators 
were  fighting  in  the  arena,  a  monkish  figure,  clothed  in  the 
dress  of  his  order,  was  suddenly  seen  to  rnsh  into  the 
midst  of  tlie  combatants,  and  with  loud  prayer  and  excited 
gesture  endeavor  to  separate  tliem.  This  was  Telemachus 
(or  Almachius),  who  had  traveled  from  the  far  East  for  the 
express  purpose  of  bearing  his  testimony  against  these  nn- 
christian  games,  and  sacrificing  his  life,  if  necessary,  to  ob- 
tain their  abolition.  The  Prstor,  Alybius,  who  was  passion- 
ately attached  to  them,  indignant  at  the  interruption,  and 
excited  by  the  wild  cries  of  the  audience,  instantly  ordered 
the  ofladlators  to  cut  the  intruder  down,  and  Telemachus 
paid  the  forfeit  of  his  life  for  his  heroic  courage.  But  the 
crown  and  the  palm  of  martyrdom  were  given  him,  and  he 
was  not  only  raised  to  a  place  in  the  calendar  of  saints,  but 
he  accomplislied  in  a  measure  the  great  object  for  which  he 
hud  sacrificed  bimself  ;  for,  struck  with  the  grandeur  and 
justness  of  the  courageous  protest  which  he  had  sealed  with 
his  blood,  the  Emperor  Honorius  abolished  the  gladiatorial 
games,  and  from  that  time  forward  no  gladiator  has  fought 
in  the  Colosseum  against  another  gladiator. 

Combats  with  wild  beasts  continued  down  to  the  death  of 
Theodoric,  in  526,  when  they  fell  into  disuse,  and  the  edict 
of  Justinian  absolutely  abolished  them.  Up  to  this  period 
the  Colosseum  had  been  kept  in  repair,  but  this  edict  having 
rendered  it  useless  as  an  amphitheater,  it  was  thenceforward 
abandoned  to  the  assaults  of  time  and  weather,  and  the 
caprice  of  man.     The  eni'th(|uakes  and  fioods  of  the  seventh 

feet.  It  f-comw,  nl-o,  llinl  the  cacrilkc  of  the  C'liris(i:ms  •;oiifTally  ended  the  day's 
fiport.  When  tlie  other  i<howH  were  over,  the  condemned  Chrihtians  were  broui:ht 
Into  the  arena  Ihroii-li  HIik  of  the  hiinlcrH  of  llie  wild  hensts.  who  heat  them  with 
rodi«  a.M  they  pa-ced.  Some  of  the  women  were  htriinied  and  exi)OMed  in  nets,  and 
some  were  tortnied  because  they  would  not  a-hunie  tlie  cerenioidal  roben  worn  In 
the  worfliip  of  llie  pairan  divinities-  Stoky. 


2oS  HEADINGS      IN      ROMAN      H  I  S  T  O  K  T . 

century  shook  tmd  partially  destroyed  it.    Barljarians  at  home 

and    from  abroad   preyed  upon   it,  boring   it  for  its  metal 

clamp?,  plundering  it  of  every  article  of  value,  and  defacing 

its  architecture.     Still  it  would  seem  to  have  been  entire, 

or  nearly  so,  as  late  as  the  beginning  of  the  eighth  centnry, 

when  the  Anglo-Saxon  visited  Eome,  and  gazing  at  it  with 

awe  and  admiration,  broke  forth  into  the  enthusiastic  speech 

recorded   by   the    venerable    Bede,  and    thus   Englislied  by 

Byron  : — 

"  While  stands  the  Colosseum,  Rome  shall  stand  ! 
When  falls  the  Colosseum,  Rome  shall  fall  ! 
And  when  Rome  falls — the  world  !  " 

From  this  time  forward,  exposed  to  tumult,  battle,  and 
changes  of  ownership,  it  fell  rapidly  into  ruin.  During  the 
middle  ages  the  government,  regarding  it  merely  as  a  stone 
quarry,  granted  permissions  to  excavate  travertine  therefrom 
to  any  princely  family  who  could  afford  to  pay  for  them. 
Not  only  were  blocks  of  travertine  removed,  but  all  the 
marble  was  torn  down  and  burnt  into  lime  ;  and  to  such  an 
extent  were  the  spoliations  of  this  period  carried  on,  as  to 
render  it  only  surj^rising  that  anything  now  remains. 

In  1585,  Sextus  V.  endeavored  to  utilize  the  Colosseum  by 
establishing  in  it  a  woolen  manufactory,  but,  after  spending 
a  large  sum  on  the  project,  he  abandoned  it  as  impracticable. 
In  1675,  Clement  X.  set  apart  the  whole  building  to  the 
worship  of  the  martyrs,  and  in  1742,  Benedict  XIV.  again 
consecrated  it  to  the  memory  of  the  Christians  who  had 
suffered  there.  He  erected  the  cross  in  the  center  of  the 
arena,  and  repaired  the  altars  established  by  Clement  XI. 
Every  pains  has  since  liecn  used  to  preserve  it,  and  to  repair 
the  injuries  of  time. — W.  W.  Stoey's  Roba  Di  Eoma. 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  259 

THE    ERUPTION    OF    MOUNT    VESUVIUS. 

Tlme   of  the  Destrcctiok   of  POMPEn. 

The  Elder  Pliny's  Death.— On  the  24th  of  August, 
in  the  year  79,  Phuy  ^vas  residing  in  his  villa  on  the 
Misenian  promontory,  which  lies  about  twenty  miles  in  a 
direct  line  from  the  summit  of  Vesuvius,  conspicuous  across 
the  Gulf  of  Naples.  His  attention  was  drawn  from  his 
books  and  writings  to  a  cloud  of  unusual  form  and  character, 
which  hung  over  the  mountain,  and  rose,  as  appeared  on 
further  examination,  from  it,  spreading  out  from  a  slender 
and  well-defined  stem,  like  the  figure  of  a  pine-tree,  its 
color  changing  rapidly  from  black  to  white,  as  the  contents 
of  the  ejected  mass  of  which  it  proved  to  be  composed,  were 
earth  or  ashes.  The  admiral  ordered  his  Liburnian  cutter 
to  be  manned,  and  casting  aside  his  papers  prepared  to  cross 
the  water,  and  observe  the  phenomenon  nearer.  He  asked 
his  nephew  to  accompany  him,  but  the  younger  student  was 
too  intent  on  the  volumes  before  him  to  prosecute  an  inquiry 
into  the  operations  of  nature.  Meanwhile,  intelligence 
arrived  from  the  terrified  residents  at  the  foot  of  the  moun- 
tain. They  implored  the  assistance  of  the  commander  of 
the  fleet.  Pliny  directed  his  largest  vessels  to  be  got  ready 
and  steered  to  the  point  nearest  to  the  danger.  As  he 
approached  the  shore  the  ashes  began  to  fall  thick  and  hot 
upon  his  deck,  with  showers  of  glowing  stones.  A  shoal 
formed  suddenly  beneath  his  keel,  and  impeded  his  progress. 
Turning  a  little  to  the  right,,  he  came  to  land  at  Stabias,  at 
the  dwelling  of  a  friend.  Here  he  restored  contidence  to  the 
affrighted  occupants  by  the  ralmm'ss  of  his  demeanor,  Avhilc 
he  insisted  on  taking  the  usual  refreshment  of  the  bath  and 
supper,  and  conversed  with  easy  hilnrity.      As  the  shades  of 


2G0  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

evening  gathered,  the  brightness  of  the  ilames  became  more 
striking;  but,  to  calm  the  panic  of  tliose  around  him,  the 
philosopher  assured  them  that  they  arose  from  cottages  on 
the  slope,  which  the  alarmed  rustics  had  abandoned  to  the 
descending  flakes  of  fire.  He  then  took  his  customary  brief 
night's  rest,  sleeping  composedly  as  usual ;  but  his  attend- 
ants were  not  so  easily  tranquillized,  and  as  the  night 
advanced,  the  continued  fall  of  ashes  within  the  courts  of 
the  mansion  convinced  them  that  delay  would  make  escape 
impossible.  They  roused  their  master,  together  with  the 
fjiend  at  whose  house  he  was  resting,  and  hastily  debated 
how  to  i)roceed.  By  this  time  the  soil  around  them  was 
rocking  with  repeated  shocks  of  earthquake,  which  recalled 
the  horrors  of  the  still  recent  catastrophe.  The  party 
quitted  the  treacherous  shelter  of  the  house-roof,  and  sought 
the  coast  in  hopes  of  finding  vessels  to  take  them  off.  To 
protect  themselves  from  the  thickening  cinders,  they  tied 
cushions  to  their  heads.  The  sky  was  darkened  by  the 
ceaseless  shower,  and  they  groped  their  way  by  torchlight, 
and  by  the  intermitting  flashes  from  the  mountain.  The  sea 
was  agitated,  and  abandoned  by  every  bark.  Pliny,  wearied 
or  perplexed,  now  stretched  himself  on  a  piece  of  sail-cloth, 
and  refused  to  stir  farther,  while  on  the  bursting  forth  of  a 
fiercer  blast  accompanied  with  sulphurous  gases,  his  com- 
panions, all  but  two  l)ody-slaves,  fled  in  terror.  Some  who 
looked  back  in  their  flight  affirmed  that  the  old  man  rose 
once  with  the  help  of  his  attendants,  but  immediately  fell 
again,  overpowered,  as  it  seemed,  with  the  deadly  vapors. 
When  the  storm  abated  and  light  at  lust  returned,  the  body 
was  found  abandoned  on  the  spot ;  neither  the  skin  nor  the 
clothes  were  injured,  and  the  calm  expression  of  the  counte- 
nance betokened  death  by  suffocation. — Merivale. 

The  Younger  Pliny's   Flight. — When    my   uncle  had 


DESTRUCTION   OF   POMPEII    BY   VESUVIUS.      (P.  261,) 


RE  AD  IX  GS     IX      ROMAN     HISTORY.  261 

Started,  I  spent  sueli  time  as  was  left  on  my  studies — it  was 
on  their  account,  indeed,  that  I  had  stopped  behiud.  Then 
followed  tlie  hath,  dinner,  and  sleep, — this  last  disturbed  and 
brief.  There  had  been  noticed  for  many  days  before  a  trem- 
bling of  the  eartli,  which  had  caused,  however,  but  httle 
fear,  because  it  is  not  unusual  in  Campania.  But  that  night 
it  was  so  violent,  that  one  thought  that  everything  Avas  being 
not  merely  moved,  but  absolutely  overturned.  My  mother 
rushed  into  my  chamber  ;  I  was  in  the  act  of  rising,  with  the 
same  intention  of  awaking  her  should  she  have  been  asleep. 
We  sat  down  in  the  open  court  of  the  house,  which  occupied 
a  small  space  between  the  buildings  and  the  sea.  And  now — 
I  do  not  know  whetlier  to  call  it  courage  or  folly,  for  I  was 
but  in  my  eighteenth  year — I  called  for  a  volume  of  Livy, 
read  it,  as  if  I  were  perfectly  at  leisure,  and  even  continued 
to  make  some  extracts  which  I  had  begun.  Just  then  arrived 
a  friend  of  my  uncle,  who  had  lately  come  to  him  from  Spain  ; 
when  he  saw  that  we  were  sitting  doAvn  —that  I  was  even 
reading — lie  rebuked  my  mother  for  her  patience,  and  me  for 
my  Idindness  to  the  danger.  Still  I  bent  myself  as  indus- 
triously as  ever  over  my  book.  It  was  about  seven  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  but  the  daylight  was  still  faint  and  doubtful. 
The  surrounding  buildings  were  now  so  shattered,  that  in 
the  })lace  where  we  were,  which,  though  open,  was  small,  the 
danger  that  they  might  fall  on  us  was  imminent  and  unmis- 
takable. So  we  at  last  determined  to  quit  the  town.  A 
panic-stricken  crowd  followed  us.  They  preferred  the  ideas 
of  others  to  their  own — in  a  moment  of  terror  this  has  a  cer- 
tain look  of  prudence — and  they  pressed  on  us  and  drove  us 
on,  as  wc  departed,  by  their  dense  array.  When  wi'  had  got 
away  from  the  building,  wc  stojjpcMl.  'IMk  re  uc  had  (o  en- 
dure the  sight  (if  many  marvelous,  many  dreadful,  things. 
The   carriages   which  we   had    directcfi    to   be    brou<^lil    out 


262  HEADINGS     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

moved  about  in  o})posite  directions,  though  the  ground  was 
perfectly  level ;  even  when  scotched  with  stones  they  did  not 
remain  steady  in  the  same  place.  Besides  this,  we  saw  the 
sea  retire  into  itself,  seeming,  as  it  were,  to  be  driven  back 
by  the  trembling  movement  of  the  earth.  The  shore  had 
distinctly  advanced,  and  many  marine  animals  were  left  high 
and  dry  on  the  sands.  Behind  us  was  a  dark  and  dreadful 
cloud,  which,  as  it  was  broken  with  rapid  zigzag  flashes, 
revealed  behind  it  variously-shaped  masses  of  Hame:  these 
last  were  like  slieet-lightning,  tiiough  on  a  larger  scale. 
Then  our  friend  from  Spain  addressed  us  more  energetically 
and  urgently  than  ever.  "  If  your  uncle,"  he  said,  "  is  alive, 
he  wishes  you  to  be  saved ;  if  he  has  perished,  he  certainly 
wished  you  to  survive  him.  If  so,  why  do  you  hesitate  to 
escape?"  We  answered  that  we  could  not  bear  to  think 
about  our  own  safety  while  we  were  doubtful  of  his.  He 
lingered  no  longer,  but  rushed  off,  making  his  way  out  of 
the  danger  at  the  top  of  his  speed.  It  was  not  long  before 
the  cloud  that  we  saw  began  to  descend  upon  the  earth  and 
cover  the  sea.  It  had  already  surrounded  and  concealed  the 
island  of  Capres,  and  had  made  invisible  the  promontory  of 
Misenum.  My  mother  besought,  urged,  even  commanded 
me  to  fly  as  best  I  could.  '^  I  might  do  so,"  she  said,  "for  I 
was  young;  she,  from  age  and  corpulence,  could  move  but 
slowly,  but  would  be  content  to  die,  if  she  did  not  bring  death 
upon  me."  I  replied  that  I  would  not  seek  safety  except  in 
her  company ;  I  clasped  her  liand,  and  compelled  her  to  go 
with  me.  She  reluctantly  obeyed,  but  continually  reproached 
herself  for  delaying  me.  Ashes  now  began  to  fall — still, 
however,  in  small  quantities.  I  looked  behind  me ;  a  dense 
dark  mist  seemed  to  be  following  us,  spreading  itself  over 
the  country  like  a  cloud.  "Let  us  turn  out  of  the  way,"  I 
said.  "  whilst  we  can  still  see,  for  fear  that  should  we  fall  m 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  263 

the  road  we  should  be  trodden  under  foot  in  the  darkness  by 
the  throngs  that  accompany  us."  We  had  scarcely  sat  down 
when  night  w'as  upon  us, — not  such  as  we  have  when  there 
is  no  moon,  or  when  the  sky  is  cloudy,  but  such  as  there  is 
in  some  closed  room  when  the  lights  are  extinguished.  You 
might  hear  the  shrieks  of  women,  the  monotonous  waihng  of 
children,  the  shouts  of  men.  Many  were  raising  their  voices, 
and  seeking  to  recognize  by  the  voices  that  replied,  parents, 
children,  husbands,  or  wives.  Some  were  loudly  lamenting 
their  own  fate,  others  the  fate  of  those  dear  to  them.  Some 
even  prayed  for  death,  in  their  fear  of  what  they  prayed  for. 
Many  lifted  tlieir  hands  in  prayer  to  the  gods;  more  were 
convinced  that  there  were  now  no  gods  at  all,  and  that  the 
final  endless  night  of  which  we  have  heard  had  come  upon 
the  world.  There  were  not  wanting  i)ersons  who  exaggerated 
our  real  perils  witli  imaginary  or  willfully  invented  terrors. 
I  remember  some  who  declared  that  one  jiart  of  the  promon- 
tory of  Misenum  had  fallen,  that  another  was  on  fire  ;  it  was 
false,  but  they  found  people  to  believe  them.  It  now  grew 
somewhat  light  again  ;  we  felt  sure  that  this  was  not  the 
light  of  day,  but  a  proof  that  fire  was  approaching  us.  Fire 
there  was,  but  it  stopped  at  a  consirlerablc  distance  from  us  ; 
then  came  darkness  again,  and  a  thick,  heavy  fall  of  ashes. 
Again  and  again  we  stood  up  and  shook  them  off;  otherwise 
we  should  have  been  covered  by  them,  and  even  crushed  by 
the  weight.  At  last  the  black  mist  I  had  spoken  of  seemed 
to  shade  o(T  into  smoke  or  cloud,  mid  lo  roll  away.  Then 
came  genuine  daylight,  and  the  sun  shone  out  with  a  lurid 
light,  such  as  it  is  wont  to  have  in  an  eclipse.  Our  eyes, 
which  had  not  yet  recovered  from  the  effects  of  fear,  saw 
everything  changed,  everything  covered  deep  with  ashes  as  if 
with  snow.  We  returned  to  Misenum,  Jind,  after  refreshing 
ourselves  as  best  we  could,  spent  a  night  of  anxiety  in  min- 


2G4  HEADINGS     IN     R  O  31  A  N     HISTORY. 

gled  hope  and  fear.  Fear,  however,  was  still  the  stronger 
feeling ;  for  the  trembling  of  the  earth  continned,  while  many 
frenzied  persons,  with  their  terrific  i)redictions,  gave  an  ex- 
aggeration that  was  even  ludicrous  to  the  calamities  of  them- 
selves and  of  their  friends. — Plimy,  Epistle  VII.  20. 

A    SATIRE    ON    ROMAN    VICES 

Wlio  would  not,  reckless  of  the  swarm  he  meets, 

Fill  his  wide  tablets,  in  the  public  streets, 

With  angry  verse,  wlien,  through  the  mid-day  glare. 

Borne  by  six  slaves  and  in  an  open  chair. 

The  forger  comes,  who  owes  this  blaze  of  state 

To  a  wet  seal  and  a  fictitious  date  ? 

Comes,  like  the  soft  Maecenas,  lolling  by, 

And  impudently  braves  the  public  eye ! 

Or  the  rich  dame,  who  stanched  her  huFband's  thirst 

With  generous  wine,  but — drugged  it  deeply  first! 

And  now,  more  dext'rous  than  Locusta,  shows 

Her  country  friends  the  beverage  to  compose, 

And,  'midst  the  curses  of  the  indignant  throng. 

Bears,  in  broad  day,  the  spotted  corpse  along ! 

•«■  -Is-  -;:-  ■;:•  *  *  * 

And  when  could  Satire  boast  so  fair  a  field? 

Say,  when  did  Vice  a  richer  harvest  yield? 

When  did  fell  avarice  fo  engross  the  mind? 

Or  when  the  lust  of  play  so  curse  mankind  ? — 

No  longer,  now,  the  pocket's  stores  supply 

The  boundless  charges  of  the  desperate  die: 

The  chest  is  staked  ! — muttering  the  steward  stands. 

And  scarce  resigns  it,  at  his  lord's  commands. 

Now,  at  the  gate,  a  paltry  largess  lies. 

And  eager  hands  and  tongues  dispute  the  prize. 

But  first  (lest  some  false  claimant  should  be  found) 

The  wary  steward  takes  his  anxious  round. 

And  pries  in  every  face,  then  calls  aloud, 

"Come  forth,  ye  great  Dardanians.  from  the  crowd  !" 

For,  mixed  with  us,  e'en  these  besiege  tlie  door, 

And  scramble  for — the  pittance  of  the  poor ! 

'Despatch  the  Prtetor  first,"  the  master  cries, 

"  And  next  the  Tribune."     "No,  not  so,"  replies 


READINGS     IX     K  0  M  A  X     H  I  S  T  O  K  Y  .  261 

Tlie  Freedmaii,  bustling  through  ;  "  first  come  is  still 

First  served  ;  and  I  may  claim  my  right,  and  will  ! — 

T liough.  born  a  slave  ( 'tis  bootless  to  deny 

What  these  bored  ears  betray  to  every  eye\ 

On  my  own  rents,  in  splendor  now  I  live. 

On  five  fair  freeholds  !     Let  the  Tribunes  wait." 

Yes,  let  them  wait!  thine,  Riches,  be  the  field! 

It  is  not  meet  that  he  to  honor  yield. 

To  SACRED  Honor,  who,  with  whitened  feet, 

Was  hawked  for  snle,  so  lately,  through  the  street. 

O  Gold !  though  Rome  beholds  no  altars  flame, 

No  temples  rise  to  thy  pernicious  name, 

Such  as  to  Victory,  Virtue,  Faith  are  reared, 

And  Concord,  where  the  clamorous  stork  is  heard. 

Yet  is  thy  full  divinity  confest, 

Thy  shrine  established  here  in  every  breast. 

What  rare  pursuits  employ  the  client's  day  ! 
First  to  the  patron's  door  their  court  to  pay. 
Next  to  the  forum  to  support  his  cause, 
Thence  to  Apollo,  learned  in  the  laws. 
And  the  triumj)hal  statues. 

Returning  home,  he  droj^s  theni  at  the  gate : 
And  now  the  weary  clients,  wise  too  late, 
Resign  their  hopes,  and  supperless  retire. 
To  spend  the  paltry  dole  in  herbs  and  fire. 

Meanwhile  their  patron  sees  his  i)alace  stored 

With  every  dainty  earth  and  sea  afford! 

Stretched  on  the  unsocial  couch,  he  rolls  his  eyes 

O'er  many  an  orb  of  matchless  form  and  size, 

Selects  the  fairest  to  receive  his  plate, 

And,  at  one  meal,  devours  a  whole  estate!  — 

See  !  the  lone  glutton  craves  whole  boars  !  a  beast 

Designed  by  nature  for  the  social  feast  ! — 

But  speedy  wrath  o'ertakes  him  :  gorged  with  food, 

And  s\voll(;n  and  fretted  by  the  j)eacock  crude, 

lie  seeks  the  Inith,  his  feverish  pulse  to  still, 

Hence  sudden  death,  and  age  without  a  Will! 

Swift  flies  the  tab;,  by  witty  spleen  increast. 

And  furnishes  a  laugh  at  every  feast; 

The  lauirh.  his  friends  not  undeliglited  hear. 

And,  fallen  from  all  llieir  ho[.eH,  insult  his  bier. 

.lUVENAI.. 


2GG  READINGS     IN     EOMAN     HISTORY. 


THE     FIVE     GOOD     EMPEROES. 

Nerva  and  Trajan. — Nervn,  reigned  but  sixteen  months, 
and  had  no  time  to  do  more  tlian  display  his  kindness  of 
disposition,  and  to  name  liis  successor.  This  was  Trajan,  a 
man  who  was  not  even  a  Roman  by  birth,  but  who  was 
thought  by  his  patron  to  have  retained  in  the  distant  prov- 
ince of  Spain,  where  he  was  born,  the  virtues  which  had 
disappeared  in  the  center  and  capital  of  the  Empire.  The 
deficiency  of  Nerva's  character  had  been  its  softness  and  want 
of  force.  The  stern  vigilance  of  Trajan  made  ample  amends. 
He  was  the  best-known  soldier  of  his  time,  and  revived 
onco  more  the  terror  of  the  Roman  arms.  But  his  victories 
were  fruitless:  he  attached  no  new  country  permanently  to 
the  Empire,  and  derives  all  his  glory  now  from  the  excel- 
lence of  his  internal  administration.  Trajan  visited  his 
friends  on  terms  of  equality,  and  had  the  greatness  of  mind, 
generally  deficient  in  absolute  princes,  to  bestow  his  confi- 
dence on  those  who  deserved  it.  Somebody  told  him  one 
day  to  beware  of  his  minister,  who  intended  to  murder  him 
on  the  first  opportunity.  ''  Come  again,  and  tell  me  all  par- 
ticulars to-morrow,"  said  the  Emperor.  In  the  meantime 
he  went  unbidden  and  supped  with  the  accused.  He  was 
shaved  l)y  his  barber,  was  attended  for  a  mock  illness  by  his 
surgeon,  bathed  in  his  bath,  ate  his  meat,  and  drank 
his  wine.  On  the  following  day  the  informer  came.  "Ah!" 
said  Trajan,  interrupting  him  in  his  accusation,  "if  Surenus 
had  wished  to  kill  me,  he  would  have  done  it  last  night." — 
White. 

Trajaii's  Architectural  Improvemetits:. — No  reign,  perhaps, 
was  marked  by  more  extensive  alterations  and  additions  to 


READINGS      IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  267 

the  existing  features  of  tiie  city.  He  built  for  the  gods,  the 
senate,  and  the  people,  not  for  himself;  he  restored  the 
temples,  enlarged  the  halls  and  places  of  public  resort ;  but 
he  was  content  himself  witli  the  palaces  of  his  predecessors. 

The  splendors  of  the  city,  and  the  splendors  of  the 
Campus  beyond  it,  were  still  separated  by  a  narrow  isthmus^ 
thronged  perhaps  with  the  squalid  cabins  of  the  poor,  and 
surmounted  by  the  remains  of  the  Servian  wall  which  ran 
along  its  summit.  Trajan  swept  away  every  building  on  the 
site,  leveled  the  spot  on  which  they  had  stood,  and  laid  out 
a  vast  area  of  columnar  galleries  connecting  halls  and 
chambers  for  public  use  and  recreation.  The  new  forum 
Avas  adorned  with  two  libraries,  one  for  Greek,  the  other  for 
lionian,  volumes,  and  it  was  bounded  on  the  west  by  a  basilica 
of  magnificent  dimensions.  The  area  was  beautified  with 
numerous  statues,  in  which  the  figure  of  Trajan  was  fre- 
quently repeated,  and  among  its  decorations  were  groups  in 
bronze  and  marble  representing  his  most  illustrious  actions. 
The  balustrades  flamed  with  gilded  images  of  arms  and 
horses.  Amidst  this  profusion  of  splendor  the  great  object 
to  which  the  eye  was  principally  directed  was  the  column, 
which  rose  majestically  in  the  center  of  the  forum  to  the 
height  of  128  feet,  sculptured  from  the  base  of  the  shaft  to 
the  summit  with  the  story  of  the  Dacian  wars,  shining 
in  every  volute  and  molding  with  gold  and  pigments,  and 
crowned  with  the  colossal  effigy  of  the  august  conqueror/'' — 
Merivale. 

Pliny's    Corresponrhmce    with    Trajan    Concerning    the 

*  Trajan  cnjoyefl  tho  dictlrction,  dear  in  Roman  eyes,  of  a  fine  flfjiiro  and  a  noblo 
countoiianct!.  In  utaturo  he  exceeded  the  common  height,  and  on  public  occasions, 
when  he  loved  to  walk  bareheaded  in  the  niidnt  of  the  senatorn.  hiw  K'ay  haiiu 
trli'anicd  con^picuout-ly  above  the  crowd.  Ills  fcaluren  were  re^,'iil:ir,  and  bin  face 
was  llie  last  of  the  imperial  Beriet*  tliat  n^tained  tlie  true  Ronmii  lyjx',  not  in  the 
a'lniline  none  only,  but  in  the  broad  and  low  forehead,  the  aufriilar  chin,  the  firm 
comprcHHcd  lips,  and  generally  in  the  btern  conipaclnesH  of  its  structure.— 
Mrkitale. 


268  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Christians. — Pliny  (as  propraetor)  to  Trajan. — "It  is  my 
invariable  rule  to  refer  to  you  in  all  matters  about  which 
I  feel  doubtful.  Who  can  better  remove  my  doubts  or  in- 
form my  ignorance  ?  I  have  never  been  present  at  any 
trials  of  Christians,  so  that  I  do  not  knovr  what  is  the  nature 
of  the  charge  against  them,  or  what  is  the  usual  punish- 
ment. Whether  any  difference  or  distinction  is  made  be- 
tween the  young  and  persons  of  mature  years — whether 
repentance  of  their  fault  entitles  them  to  pardon — whether 
the  very  profession  of  Christianity,  unaccompanied  by  any 
criminal  act,  or  whether  only  the  crime  itself  involved  in  the 
profession,  is  a  subject  of  punishment ;  on  all  these  points  I 
am  in  great  doubt.  Meanwhile,  as  to  those  persons  who 
have  been  charged  before  me  with  being  Christians,  I  have 
observed  the  following  method.  I  asked  them  whether  they 
were  Christians;  if  they  admitted  it,  I  repeated  the  question 
twice,  and  threatened  them  with  punishment;  if  they 
persisted,  I  ordered  them  to  be  at  once  punished.  I  conld 
not  doubt  that  whatever  might  be  the  nature  of  their 
opinions,  such  inflexible  obstinacy  deserved  punishment. 
Some  were  brought  before  me  possessed  with  the  same 
infatuation,  who  were  Roman  citizens;  these  I  took  care 
should  be  sent  to  Rome.  As  often  happens,  the  accusation 
spread,  from  being  followed,  and  various  })hases  of  it  came 
under  my  notice.  An  anonymous  information  was  laid 
before  me,  containing  a  great  number  of  names.  Some 
said  they  neither  were  nor  had  been  Christians ;  they 
repeated  after  me  an  invocation  of  the  gods,  and  offered 
wine  and  incense  before  your  statue  (which  I  had 
ordered  to  be  brought  for  that  purpose,  together 
with  those  of  the  gods),  and  even  reviled  the  name  of 
Christ  ;  whereas  there  is  no  forcing,  it  is  said,  those  who 
are   really    Christians    into   any   of   these   acts.      These   I 


E  E  A  D  I  X  G  S     IX     R  O  M  A  X     HISTORY.  269 

thought  ought  to  be  discharged.  Some  among  them,  who 
were  accused  by  a  witness  in  person,  at  first  confessed  them- 
selves Christians,  l)ut  immediately  after  denied  it;  the  rest 
owned  that  they  had  once  been  Christians,  but  had  now 
(some  aboTC  three  years,  others  more,  and  a  few  above 
twenty  years  ago)  renounced  the  profession.  They  all 
worshipped  your  statue  and  those  of  the  gods,  and  uttered 
imprecations  against  the  name  of  Christ.  They  declared 
that  their  offence  or  crime  was  summed  up  in  this,  that  they 
met  on  a  stated  day  before  daybreak,  and  addressed  a  form 
of  prayer  to  Christ,  as  to  a  divinity,  binding  themselves  by 
a  solemn  oath,  not  for  any  wicked  pui^pose,  but  never  to 
commit  fraud,  theft,  or  adultery,  never  to  break  their  word, 
or  to  deny  a  trust  when  called  on  to  deliver  it  up  :  after 
which  it  was  their  custom  to  separate,  and  then  reassemble, 
and  to  eat  together  a  harmless  meal.  From  this  custom, 
however,  they  desisted  after  the  proclamation  of  my  edict, 
by  which,  according  to  your  command,  I  forbade  the  meet- 
ing of  any  assemblies.  In  consequence  of  their  declaration, 
I  judged  it  necessary  to  try  to  get  at  the  real  trutii  by  put- 
ting to  the  torture  two  female  slaves,  who  were  said  to 
officiate  in  their  religious  rites ;  but  all  I  could  discover  was 
evidence  of  an  absiii'd  and  extravagant  superstition.  And  so 
I  adjourned  all  further  ])roceedings  in  order  to  consult  you. 
It  seems  to  me  a  matter  deserving  your  consideration,  more 
especially  as  great  numbers  must  be  involved  in  the  danger 
of  these  prosecutions,  which  have  already  extended,  and  arc 
still  likely  to  extend,  to  persons  of  all  ranks,  ages,  and  of 
both  sexes.  The  contagion  of  the  superstition  is  not  con- 
fined to  the  cities  ;  it  has  spread  iiilo  the  villat^^cs  and  the 
country.  Still  I  think  it  may  be  checked.  At  any  rate,  the 
temples  which  were  almost  abandoned  l^egin  again  to  be 
frequented,    and    the   sacred    rites,    so    long   neglected,   arc 


270  READINGS     IN     EOMAN     HISTORY. 

revived,  and  there  is  also  a  general  demand  for  victims  for 
sacrifice,  which  till  lately  fouud  very  few  purchasers.  From 
all  this  it  is  easy  to  conjecture  what  numbers  might  be 
reclaimed,  if  a  general  pardou  were  granted  to  those  who 
repented  of  their  error." 

Trajati  to  Pliny.  (In  reply). — "You  have  adopted  the 
right  course  in  investigating  the  charges  made  against  the 
Christians  who  were  brought  before  you.  It  is  not  possible 
to  lay  down  any  general  rule  for  all  such  cases.  Do  not  go 
out  of  your  way  to  look  for  them.  If  they  are  brought  before 
you,  and  the  offense  is  proved,  you  must  punish  them,  but 
with  this  restriction,  that  when  the  person  denies  that  he  is 
a  Christian,  and  shall  make  it  evident  that  he  is  not  by 
invoking  the  gods,  he  is  to  be  pardoned,  notwithstanding 
any  former  suspicion  against  him.  Anonymous  informations 
ought  not  to  be  received  in  any  sort  of  prosecution.  It  is 
introducing  a  very  dangerous  precedent,  and  is  quite  foreign 
to  the  spirit  of  our  age." 

Hadrian  and  Antinous. — In  walking  through  the  Ro- 
man museums,  we  see  no  head  so  frequently  as  that  of  the 
Emperor  Hadrian.  Usually,  the  bust  of  his  favorite.  Anti- 
nous,  stands  near,  and  a  greater  contrast  than  the  one  pre- 
sented by  these  two  faces  could  scarcely  be  found  on  earth. 

Poet  and  scientist,  artist  and   sculptor,  architect 

and  astronomer,  Hadrian  understood  just  enough  of  all  these 
things  to  be  thoroughly  dissatisfied  with  the  imperfection  of 
his  own  performances.  Continually  goaded  by  the  conscious- 
ness of  having  failed  to  execute  his  highest  plans,  he  became 
doubly  irritable  in  old  age.  The  traits  of  malice  and  caprice 
in  his  character  constantly  became  more  conspicuous,  and  the 
Eoman  world  which  owed  him  so  much  and  whose  life  he 
had  enriched  and  beautified  more  than  any  Csesar  before  him, 
often  anxiously  remembered  Tiberius,  who  up  to  old  age  had 


KKADINGS     IX     ROMAX     HISTORY.  271 

been  the  very  symbol  of  self-control  and  moderation,  and 
then  first  revealed  the  tiger-natnre  in  his  breast.  He  lived 
separated  from  his  wife,  the  snllen  Sabina,  and  had  ap])ointed 
as  his  heir  the  consumptive  ^lius  Verus,  because,  the  Romans 
declared,  he  foresaw  that  ^Elius  would  survive  him.  Bitter 
hatred  existed  between  him  and  his  brother-in-law  Servianus 
and  his  grandson,  Avho  had  expected  to  inherit  the  throne. 
So  he  walked  wearily  along  his  lonely  Avay  to  the  end, 
oppressed  at  last  by  Servianus'  curse,  who  condemned  by 
Hadrian,  in  his  dying  hour  besought  the  gods  to  refuse 
Hadrian  death  when  he  desired  it. 

This  lonely  man,  who  remained  incomprehensible  even  to 
friends  and  favorites,  was  devoted  for  a  long  time  to  a  beau- 
tiful Bithynian  youth,  whom  he  loved  as  Socrates  loved 
Alcibiades,  and  Caesar  Brutus.  This  w-as  Antinous,  with 
whose  busts  and  statues  Hadrian  has  filled  the  world,  and 
whose  innocent  features  contrast  strangely  with  the  passion- 
seamed  visage  of  the  master,  to  whom  he  was  the  dearest 

thing  in  life Antinous  voluntarily  sacrificed  his  life 

for  his  Caesar,*  and  Hadrian,  after  the  youth's  death,  com- 
manded that  he  should  be  honored  as  a  god Tlie 

worship  of  the  beautiful  youth  spread  with  amazing  celerity 
as  a  new  faith.  There  was  scarcely  a  city  in  the  empire,  that 
did  not  have  a  medal  stnick,  and  the  world  became  full  of 
the  statues  and  sanctuaries  of  the  Bithynian  god. — George 
Taylor. 

Hadrian's  Villa  at  Tibur. — When  Phlegon  had  left 
Hadrian  two  or  three  weeks  before,  pyramids  of  bricks  towered 
into  the  air,  the  forest  rang  with  the  shouts  of  the  workmen 
toiling  in  twenty  different  places,  Ihe  foundations  of  the 
buildings  were  only  a  man's  height  abf)vc  the  gronnd.     Now 

*  \lc  flrowncd  liimsc-lf  in  Uk;  Nile,  in  coiif-otiiicnce,  it  in  pnid,  of  nn  oracle  that 
dcmaiidi-d  for  thi-  lifi;  of  the  Emporor  llic  siicriflce  of  tlie  object  dearest  to  him. 


272  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

a  solemn  stillness  brooded  over  the  blooming  hill-side,  the 
piles  of  red  brick  were  removed,  the  lime-pits  filled  with 
earth,  the  ground  was  leveled,  and  the  turf  sown.  Marble 
figures,  gleaming  from  amid  the  dark  old  trees,  appeared  on  the 
right  and  left.  The  front  of  the  Greek  theater  stood  in  glit- 
tering relief  against  the  foliage  behind.  From  the  Palaestra, 
hidden  among  the  laurel  bushes,  Phlegon  heard  the  full  rich 
tones  of  his  favorite  Antinous,  directing  the  boys'  games. 
Passing  the  Nymphfeum,  the  splashing  of  the  water  in  the 
echoing  hall  delighted  him.  A  broad  avenue  of  cypress  trees, 
bordered  on  the  right  and  left  with  the  most  superb  statues 
carried  away  from  the  Greek  Islands,  led  past  the  library  to 
Hadrian's  residence. 

On  the  terrace  overlooking  the  Hippodrome,  the 

Academy,  and  the  Egyptian  Canopus,  Phlegon  found  his 
master.  The  emperor  had  already  left  the  breezy  height  of 
the  temple  of  Heracles  in  the  city,  and  though  here  and 
there  a  skillful  architect  moved  noiselessly  to  and  fro  with  a 
few  workmen,  the  Casar's  villa  was  already  as  thoroughly 
fitted  out  as  if  he  had  occupied  it  for  years.  Work  was  still 
going  on  in  the  other  buildings,  scattered  over  an  extent  of 
seven  miles,  and  the  architects  of  Elysium,  Tartarus,  Cano- 
pus, and  the  numerous  temples,  spent  weary  days,  for  Hadrian 
constantly  found  something  to  be  improved.  The  villa  was 
to  embody  everything  grand  and  beautiful  he  had  witnessed 
during  his  long,  wandering  life.  As  the  Eoman  patrician 
ordered  pictures  of  favorite  spots  to  be  painted  on  the  walls 
of  his  house,  or  placed  in  his  dwelling  silver  models  of  the 
temples  and  citadels  he  had  seen,  so  Hadrian  intended  to 
make  the  heights  of  Tibur  a  huge  album  of  travels,  whose 
sketches  of  nature  imitated  the  originals;  and  when  the  lat- 
ter were  transportable,  they  were  by  no  means  safe  from 
being  incorporated   within    the  album.     Temples,  theaters, 


READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY.  273 

and  statues  were  removed  and  set  up  again  beside  copies  of 
the  great  architectural  works  of  Greece  and  Egypt,  wliicli 
Hadrian  had  had  most  carefully  prepared. 

"  Where  are  we  ?  "  the  Caesar  asked  his  faithful  companion, 
when  they  had  entered  the  porch. 

"  Why,  in  the  Stoa  Poicile  ! ''  replied  Phlegon,  smiling. 
"  We  have  the  halls,  only  Zeno  is  lacking." 

From  here  Hadrian  went  up  a  woodland  path,  leaning 
from  time  to  time  on  his  shorter  companion,  to  allow  an 
asthmatic  oppression  of  breathing  to  pass  away.  Two  stela, 
one  bearing  a  head  of  Homer,  and  the  other  of  Achilles, 
marked  a  narrow  footway,  leading  between  thick  laurel- 
bushes  to  an  outlook.  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  valley  a 
group  of  lofty  oaks  stood  on  the  bare  mountain  ridge. 

"Dodonal"  exclaimed  Phlegon  in  amazement. 

"  Let  us  go  across,"  replied  Hadrian,  delighted  that  his 
companion  had  recognized  the  scene.  "Those  who  question 
the  oracle  will  climb  the  steep  path  yonder  ;  we  will  remain 
here,  where  the  soft  west  wind  fans  us.  See  how  distinctly 
the  roofs  of  Rome  can  be  seen  to-day.  I  think  I  can  distin- 
guish the  temple  of  Venus  and  Roma.  Do  you  hear  the  cal- 
drons of  Dodona  ?  " 

Following  the  sound,  the  two  companions  soon  reached 
the  gray  holm-oaks,  that  shaded  a  wide,  bare  spot. 

As  a  stronger  breeze  rose,  strange  sounds  became  audible 
in  the  branches  of  the  oaks.  On  every  tree  hung  a  brazen 
basin,  beside  which  was  fastened  a  whip  that  supported  three 
iron  chains,  holding  silver  balls,  wiiich  sometimes  striking 
clearly  against  each  other,  anon  when  a  more  powerful  gust 
of  wind  swept  by,  clashing  against  the  more  resonant  basin, 
lent  the  tree  a  continuous  voice.  Leaning  on  the  oak,  as  if 
she  had  grown  a  i)arl  of  it,  and  staring  into  an  oddly-shaped 
urn,   covered  with   strange  pictures,   which   conUiiufd   the 


274  READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

sacred  lots,  was  a  weather-beaten  old  woman,  whose  white 
hair  hung  in  tangled  strands  over  her  wrinkled  face.  Phle- 
gon  would  willingly  have  asked  what  the  divinities  were 
preparing,  bnt  Hadrian  seemed  like  a  child  afraid  of  its  own 
toy.  He  turned  in  his  thumbs,  to  ward  off  the  old  Thes- 
salian  witch's  evil  eye,  and  walked  rapidly  down  to  Tempe. 
On  the  way  they  saw  a  pale  young  girl,  sitting  beside  a  dark 
well  that  extended  far  back  into  the  mountain.  A  bundle  of 
torches  lay  in  her  lap. 

"  The  Zeus  well/'  said  Hadrian,  and  Phlegon  gazed  into  the 
black  water,  on  which  floated  a  few  bubbles.  Hadrian  lighted 
a  torch,  passed  it  over  the  bubbles  till  they  burst,  extin- 
guished it  in  the  waves,  then  held  the  other  end  close  above 
the  surface  and  slowly  lighted  it  afresh  at  the  burning  gas. 

Through  Tempe  the  way  led  to  Elysium.  A  solemn  ave- 
nue of  cypress-trees  extended  past  the  deities  who  lowered 
the  torch,  and  the  contemplative  statue  of  Hermes,  the  guide 
of  the  dead,  to  a  gate,  adorned  on  one  side  with  a  bas-relief 
of  Hercules  and  Hebe,  and  on  the  other  with  Cupid  and 
Psyche.  This  gate  afforded  admittance  to  a  gloomy  tufa- 
cave,  which  at  the  next  turn  gave  a  view  of  a  smiling  lake 
and  pleasant  meadows  ;  again  the  way  grew  darker,  to  reveal 
an  artistically-framed  view  of  the  fragrant  plains  and  the 
blue  Sabine  hills. 

So  the  walk  continued  amid  charming  new  scenes  until 
the  blue  sky,  more  alluring  than  ever,  appeared  beyond  the 
cave.  Through  blossoming  bushes  and  fragrant  roses  the 
two  companions  emerged  upon  a  beautiful  carpet  of  turf, 
where  the  lake  again  sparkled  before  them,  reflecting  a 
domed  temple  and  countless  palms  and  statues.  Boats  lay 
on  the  shore,  white  and  dark  swans  glided  over  the  silver 
surface,  and  the  warbling  choruses  of  birds  reminded  Phle- 
gon that  it  was  no  dream-vision  outspread  before  him. 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  275 

"This  is  the  fairest  sight  I  ever  beheld,  Caesar,"  he  said 
with  a  simplicity  that  best  showed  how  deeply  he  was  moved. 
A  white  deer  emerged  from  the  dark  shrubbery  and  walked 
slowly  up  to  the  emperor,  to  whom  it  nestled  caressingly, 

"Only  wait  till  we  celebrate  our  first  festival  here, 
Phlegon,"  said  Hadriau,  ''  when  boats  and  flags  and  un- 
veiled beauty  animate  this  shore,  when  Syrian  dancers  and 
female  flute-players  perform  their  juggling  feats  and  move 
in  changing  circles.  What  the  author  of  the  Elysium 
dreamed,  we  will  have  displayed  here  before  the  eyes." 

With  these  words  he  sat  down.  "True,  the  best  thing  is 
lacking,  the  potion  of  youth,  which  no  Hebe  gives  us. 
What  avails  all  earthly  nectar  to  the  old  man  with  feeble 
stomach?  What  is  ambrosia  to  the  sick  man's  furred  tongue  ? 
And  young  people  are  no  longer  like  us.  Antinous  dreams 
the  years  of  his  vigor  away  in  dull  melancholy,  and  \^erus 
wanted  to  enjoy  life  ere  he  was  mature,  so  he  now  has  all  an 
old  man's  aches  at  twenty.  Come,"  he  added,  rising,  "we 
can  create  no  Elysium  here  without  the  gods,  but  we  shall 
fare  better  in  Tartarus.  Go  on,  I  fear  the  cold  down  yonder. 
We  will  meet  again  under  the  blooming  tamarind  trees, 
but  draw  your  toga  closely  around  you,  it  is  cool  in  Orcus." 

Without  any  special  desire  to  do  so,  Phlegon  approached 
a  gate,  at  whose  entrance  a  Cerberus  with  iron  jaws  an- 
nounced through  which  door  the  traveler  should  pass. 
After  walking  a  few  paces,  Phlegon  stumbled  and  nearly  fell 
down  a  flight  of  steps  that  were  almost  indistinguishable  in 
the  darkness.  In  recovering  himself  he  struck  his  forehead 
against  the  stalactite  formations  hanging  from  the  roof,  and 
greatly  incensed,  waited  for  a  time  until  his  eyes  wore  more 
accustomed  to  the  gloom,  then  walked  towards  the  light  of 
a  little  lamp  glimmering  in  the  distance,  while  the  noise  of 
water  reached  his  ears.     At  the  lamj)  there  was  a  bend  in 


276  READINGS     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

the  path,  and  Phlegon  gained  a  sheet  of  water,  illumined 
by  a  ghostly  light  from  above,  while  strange  shadows  and 
misty  forms  glided  to  and  fro  over  the  dark,  rocky  walls. 
Turning  rouml,  he  started,  for  close  beside  him  in  a  boat 
stood  Charon,  holding  out  a  motionless  hand,  in  which  lay 
several  copper  coins.  For  a  moment  Phlegon  had  thought 
this  Charon  a  living  man.  Now  he  discovered  that  this 
guide  also  was  only  a  statue.  He  entered  the  boat  to  row 
himself  to  the  other  shore,  but  had  scarcely  sat  down  w^hen 
the  skiff,  drawn  by  a  rope  beneath,  began  to  move.  An 
offensive  smoke,  like  the  vapors  of  sulphur,  whirled  in 
strange  forms  over  the  dark  lake.  "  A  vein  of  the  Albula 
must  have  been  conducted  here,"  said  Phlegon.  Niches, 
lighted  from  above,  sliowed,  apparently  moved  by  the  float- 
ing mist,  scenes  in  Orcus.  As  soon  as  the  boat  passed  a 
cave  the  figures  began  to  move.  Here  Sisyphus  rolled  his 
stone,  which  monotonously  fell  back  again;  here  Tantalus 
was  tormented  with  longing  for  his  fruit ;  here  the  Danaids 
filled  their  sieve ;  here  Ixion's  wheel  turned ;  here  a  vulture, 
flapping  its  wings,  devoured  Prometheus'  liver.  The 
stalactites  hung  lower  and  lower  from  the  roof,  so  that 
Phlegon  was  at  last  compelled  to  lie  flat  in  the  boat  like 
a  corpse,  and  thus  extended  reached  the  other  shore. 
The  grimacing  Charon  still  held  out  his  hand  with  the 
coins. 

"  ril  bring  Hadrian  his  obolus,  in  token  that  even  the 
terrors  of  the  nether- world  have  not  affrighted  the  pupil  of 
the  Stoa."  He  seized  the  coin  firmly,  but  the  statue  shut 
its  hand,  its  head  was  hideously  lighted  from  within  and  a 
malicious  fire  glowed  in  its  green  eyes.  Then  the  monster's 
hand  opened  again,  and  Phlegon  hastily  withdrew  his 
pinched  fingers.  Indignant  at  the  trick,  the  Greek  looked 
around  him  for  means  to  reach  the  shore,  but  only  a  narrow, 


READINGS     IX     ROM  AX     HISTORY.  277 

slippery  path  led  upward.  A  handle  in  tlie  cliff  showed 
how  it  might  be  reached,  but  as  he  grasped  it  the  whole  mass 
of  rock  turned,  aud  through  a  narrow  cleft  Phlegon  forced 
his  way  into  a  dark  cave,  while  the  rock  again  revolved, 
imprisoning  him  in  a  gloomy  cell.  Waterfalls,  worked  by 
machinery,  were  heard  close  by  him,  and  human  cries  and 
groans  united  to  make  all  the  tortures  of  Tartarus  assail  the 
Greek's  excited  nerves.  He  stamped  angrily  at  the  thought 
that  the  emperor  had  lured  him  into  this  snare,  but  the  cell 
in  which  he  stood  instantly  rose  and  Phlegon  floated  up- 
ward, raised  slowly  in  the  dark  shaft  by  iron  rods  which  he 
now  perceived  for  the  first  time.  A  bright  ray  of  light 
streamed  from  a  side  gallery,  and  Phlegon  looked  up  at  a 
water-fall  crushing  human  limbs  beneath  it;  a  fiery  red  glow 
now  fell  upon  his  face,  and  ho  beheld  a  flaming  fire  where 
tortured  forms  writiicd  and  sighed.  Then  through  a  grat- 
ing he  saw  ragged  figures  lying  in  a  dungeon.  But  what 
was  that  ?     A  human  voice  rose  from  a  cavern. 

'•'Save  me,  Antinous!  Antinous,  you  who  are  so  kind, 
plead  with  C'gesar." 

Phlegon  had  already  passed  on  ;  his  conveyance  stopped, 
and  he  found  himself  in  a  dark,  lofty  vault,  but  from  below 
still  rang  the  piteous  cries:  "Antinous!  Antinous!" 
Filled  with  horror,  Phlegon  again  groped  for  the  handle. 
The  rock  turned  as  before,  and  a  flood  of  dazzling  light  fell 
upon  his  eyes.  lie  could  not  recognize  the  figure  that  stood 
before  him. 

"Welcome  to  the  ujipcr  world!"'  he  heard  Hadrian's 
voice  say. 

*' A  sorry  jest,  Ca-sar,"  re])liod  Phlegon  indignantly. 

"That  is  what  the  dead  in  Tartarus  say."— George 
Taylor,  in  Anfi/ious,  A  Iioiuaticc  of  Ancient  Koine. 

The  Good-Humor  of  Antoninus  Pius. — There   is  a 


278  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

story  told  ubont  Antoninus  that  illustrates  well  at  the  same 
time  his  remarkable  forgiveness  of  injuries  and  his  sense  of 
humor.     It  is  said  that  when  he  first  went  to  Smyrna  as 
pro-consul  of  Asia,  he  was  offered  temporarily  the  house  of 
Polemon,    the    celebrated    Sophist    and    rhetorician,    who 
happened  at  the  time  to  be  away.     A  short  time  afterward, 
Polemon  returned,  in  the  middle  of  the  niglit,  and,  finding 
his  house  occupied,  exclaimed  in  anger  that  he  had  been 
turned  out  of  his  own  house.     The  pro-consul   overheard 
the  remark,  and,  getting  out  of  bed  at  once,  he  collected  his 
luggage  together  and  went  in  search  of  other  lodgings.   After 
Antoninus  was  appointed  Emperor,  Polemon  had  occasion 
to  come  to  Rome.     One  day  Antoninus  chanced  to  see  him 
in  the  street.     He  smiled,  and,  after  conversing  pleasantly 
with   him  a  few  moments,  gave  orders  that  a  room  in  the 
palace  should  be  made  ready  for  the  stranger.     "  But  be 
sure,"  he  said  good-humoredly  to  the  servant,  "that  no  one 
shall  turn  him  out."     This  gentle  rebuke,  however,  did  not 
succeed  in  improving  Polemon's  temper.     At  a  play  which 
he  attended  while  in  Eome,  one  of  the  actors  failed  to  per- 
form his  part  to  Polemon's  satisfaction ;  whereupon  Polemon 
insisted   that   the   fellow   should  be   driven   off    the   stage. 
Later,  the  comedian,  bringing  the  matter  to  the  notice  of 
the  Emperor,  was  asked,  '-'At  what  hour  did  he  drive  you 
from    the   stage?"     "  It  was  at  midday."     "Ah,"   replied 
Antoninus,    "  It  was  midnight  that  he  drove  me  from  his 
house,  and  I  made  no  complaint."     His  love  of  peace  was 
such,  says  Capitolinus,  that  he  used  often  to  remark,  with 
Scipio,  that  "he  jDreferred  to  serve  one  citizen  than  to  kill  a 
thousand  enemies."     This  desire  to  serve  his  fellow-men  is 
brought  prominently  before  us  in  tlie  statement  of  Capitolinus 
that  he  always  refused  to  accept  legacies  from  any  one  who 
died   and  left   descendants.      But  the   most  characteristic 


KEADIXGS     IN     KOMAX     HISTORY.  279 

l^icture  of  his  nature  is  given  us  in  the  following  story:  One 
day,  while  Marcus  was  weeping  over  the  death  of  a  favorite 
instructor,  the  servants  surrounded  him  and  tried  by 
sympathetic  words  to  make  him  forget  his  loss.  But 
Antoninus,  coming  up  to  them,  told  them  to  cease  their 
efforts.  "Do  not,"  he  said,  "try  to  suppress  the  feelings 
which  belong  to  a  true  man.  IS'either  philosophy  nor  the 
Empire  can  destroy  one's  love." — Watsox. 

How  a  Young  Roman  Prince  Spent  his  Days. — 
(Marcus  Atirelius  at  Lanuvium  to  his  tutor,  Fronto,  in 
Eome).  "  This  morning  I  got  up  at  three  o'clock,  and,  after 
a  good  breakfast,  studied  till  eight.  I  then  took  a  delightful 
two-hours  promenade  on  the  veranda  in  front  of  my  Avindow ; 
after  that  I  put  on  ray  shoes,  and,  dressed  in  my  military 
cloak  (for  the  Emperor  has  told  us  always  to  come  thus 
dressed  when  we  appear  before  him),  went  to  bid  good 
morning  to  my  father.  Then  we  all  started  for  the  chase, 
and  some  splendid  shots  were  made.  There  was  a  rumor 
that  some  one  had  killed  a  boar,  but  I  didn't  have  the  priv- 
ilege of  seeing  the  performance.  At  any  rate,  we  scaled  a 
very  rugged  cliff.  About  noon  the  party  came  straggling 
back  to  the  palace — I  to  my  books.  The  entire  afternoon  I 
passed  on  my  couch,  divested  of  my  shoes  and  robe.  Cato's 
oration  on   the  property  of  Pulchra  and  another  of  his  on 

appointing  a  tribune  were  the  books  I  read Now  I 

am  going  to  bed.  Not  a  dro})  of  oil  shall  I  pour  into  my  lamp 
to-night,  my  hoi'se  and  the  cold  I've  taken  have  so  fatigued 
me.  Good  night,  my  dear,  sweet  master.  It  is  for  you  I 
long,  believe  me,  far  more  than  for  Rome  herself." 

(A  day  or  two  later) '•[  slei)t  laic  this  morning 

on  account  of  my  cold,  so  I  did  not  begin  my  studies  till  five 
o'clock,  from  which  time  till  nine  I  spent  on  Cato's  A(jri- 
cuUiire  and  in  writing— not  so  much,  however,  as  I  wrote 


380  READINGS     IN     KOMAN     HISTOET. 

yesterday.  Then  I  gargled  my  throat,  and  after  that  went 
to  greet  my  father  and  attend  him  as  he  offered  sacrifice. 
Then  to  breakfast ;  and  what  do  you  suppose  I  ate  ?  Noth- 
ing but  a  little  piece  of  bread,  though  I  saw  the  others  all 
devouring  beans  and  onions  and  fish.  Then  we  went  out  to 
the  vintage,  and  grew  hot  and  merry,  but  left  a  few  grapes 
still  hanging,  as  the  old  poet  says,  '  atop  on  the  topmost  bough.' 
At  noon  we  came  home  again,  and  I  studied  a  little,  though 
w^ith  poor  success.  Then  I  chatted  a  long  time  with  my 
mother,  as  she  was  sitting  on  her  couch.  My  conversation 
consisted  of,  'What  do  you  suppose  my  Fronto  is  doing  at 
this  moment?'  to  which  she  answered,  -^And  my  Gratia, 
what  is  she  doing  ? '  and  then  I,  'And  our  httle  birdie.  Gratia 
the  less?'*  And  while  w^e  were  talking  and  quarreling  as 
to  which  of  us  loved  you  all  the  best,  the  gong  sounded — 
the  signal  that  my  father  had  gone  over  to  the  bath.  So  we 
bathed  and  dined  in  the  oil-press  room.  I  don't  mean  that 
we  bathed  in  the  press-room,  but  we  bathed,  and  then  dined, 
and  amused  ourselves  with  listening  to  the  peasants'  banter. 
And  now  that  I  am  in  my  room  again,  before  I  roll  over  and 
snore,  I  am  fulfilling  my  promise,  and  giving  an  account  of 
my  day  to  my  dear  tutor;  and  if  I  could  love  him  better 
than  I  do,  I  would  consent  to  miss  him  even  more  than  I 
miss  him  now.  Take  care  of  yourself,  my  best  and  dearest 
Fronto,  wherever  you  are.  The  fact  is  that  I  love  you,  and 
you  are  far  away." 

Some  of  the  "Meditations"  of  a  good  Emperor. — 
''Begin  the  morning  by  saying  to  thyself,  I  shall  meet  with 
the  busybody,  the  ungrateful,  the  deceitful,  the  envious." 
"  Men  exist  for  the  sake  of  one  another.  Teach  them,  then, 
or  bear  with  them."  "  Time  is  like  a  river,  made  up  of  the 
events  which  happen,  and  a  violent  stream  ;  for  as  soon  as  a 

*  Fronto's  wife  and  little  daughter. 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  281 

thing  has  been  seen  it  is  carried  away,  and  another  comes  in 
its  place,  and  this  will  be  carried  away  too.''  "Do  not  act 
as  if  thou  wert  going  to  live  ten  thousand  years.  Death 
hangs  over  thee.  While  thou  livest,  while  it  is  in  thy  power, 
be  good."  "The  mind  which  is  free  from  passions  is  a 
citadel."  "  Be  like  the  promontory  against  which  the  waves 
continually  break  ;  but  it  stands  firm,  and  tames  the  fury 
of  the  water  around  it."  "  Such  as  are  thy  habitual  thoughts, 
such  also  will  be  the  character  of  thy  mind  ;  for  the  soul  is 
dyed  l)y  the  thoughts."  "Never  value  anything  as  profitable 
to  thyself  which  shall  compel  thee  to  break  thy  promise,  to 
lose  thy  self-respect,  to  hate  any  man,  to  suspect,  to  curse,  to 
act  the  hypocrite,  to  desire  anything  which  needs  walls  and 
curtains."  "Who  is  he  that  shall  hinder  thee  from  being 
good  and  simple  ?  Do  thou  only  determine  to  live  no  longer, 
unless  thou  shalt  be  such."— From  Watson's  Marcus  Aure- 
Lius  Antoninus. 


THE  DECLINE  XEJ)   FALL  OF  ROME. 

The  Empire  sold  to  the  Highest  Bidder.— With  the 
death  of  the  excellent  Marcus  Aurelius  the  golden  age  came 
to  a  close.  Commodus  sat  on  the  throne,  and  renewed  the 
wildest  atrocities  of  the  previous  century.  Thirteen  years 
exhausted  the  patience  of  the  world,  and  a  justifiable  assassi- 
nation put  an  end  to  his  life.  There  was  an  old  man  of  the 
name  of  Pertinax,  originally  u  nickname  derived  from  his 
obstinate  or  pertinacious  disposition,  who  now  made  his 
appearance  on  the  throne,  and  perished  in  tiirce  months. 
It  chanced  that  a  certain  rich  man  of  the  name  of  Didius 
was  giving  a  supper  the  night  of  the  murder  to  some  friends. 
The  dishes  were  rich  imd  the  wine  delicious.    Inspired  by  the 


282  11 E  A  D  I  X  U  S      IN      ROMAN      HISTORY. 

good  cheer,  the  guests  said,  "  Why  don't  you  buy  the  Empire  ? 
The  soldiers  have  proclaimed  that  they  will  give  it  to  the 
highest  bidder."  Didius  knew  the  amount  of  his  treasure, 
and  was  ambitions  ;  he  got  np  from  table  and  hurried  to  the 
Praetorian  camp.  On  the  way  he  met  the  mutilated  body  of 
the  murdered  Pertinax,  dragged  through  the  streets  with 
savage  exultation,  Nothing  daunted,  he  arrived  at  the  sol- 
diers' tents.  Another  had  been  before  him — Sulpician,  the 
father-in-law  and  friend  of  the  late  Emperor.  A  bribe  had 
been  offered  to  each  soldier,  so  large  that  they  were  about  to 
conclude  the  bargain;  but  Didius  bid  many  sesterces  more. 
The  greedy  soldiery  looked  from  one  to  the  other,  and 
shouted  with  delight  as  each  new  advance  was  made.  At 
last  Sulpician  was  silent,  and  Didius  had  purchased  the 
Eoman  world  at  the  price  of  upward  of  £200  to  each  soldier 
of  the  Praetorian  guard.  He  entered  the  palace  in  state,  and 
concluded  his  supper,  which  had  been  interrupted  at  his  own 
house,  on  the  viands  prepared  for  Pertinax.  But  the  excite- 
ment of  the  auction-room  was  too  pleasant  to  be  left  to  the 
troops  in  Eome.  Offers  were  made  to  the  legions  in  all  the 
provinces,  and  Didius  was  threatened  on  every  side.  Even 
the  distant  garrisons  of  Britain  named  a  candidate  for  the 
throne;  and  Claudius  Albinus  assumed  the  imperial  purj^le, 
and  crossed  over  into  Gaul.  More  irritated  still,  the  army 
in  Syria  elected  its  general,  Pescennius  Niger,  Emperor,  and 
he  prepared  to  dispute  the  prize ;  but  quietly,  steadily,  with 
stern  face  and  heart,  advancing  from  jiroviuce  to  province, 
keeping  his  forces  in  strict  subjection,  and  lajing  claim  to 
supreme  authority  by  the  mere  strength  of  his  indomitable 
will,  came  forward -Septimius  Severus,  and  both  the  pre- 
tenders saw  that  their  fate  was  sealed  (p.  72).  Illyria  and 
Gaul  recognized  his  title  at  once.  Albinus  was  happy  to 
accept  from  him  the  subordinate  title  of  Csesar,  and  to  rule 


READIXGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  283 

as  his  lieutenaut.  Didius,  whose  bargain  turned  out  ill, 
besought  him  to  be  content  with  half  the  Empire.  Severus 
slew  the  messengers  who  brought  this  proposition,  and 
advanced  in  grim  silence.  The  Senate  assembled,  and,  by 
way  of  a  pleasant  reception  for  the  Illyrian  chief,  requested 
Didius  to  prepare  for  death.  The  executioners  found  him 
clinwinor  to  life  with  unmanly  tenacity,  and  killed  him  when 
he  had  reigned  seventy  days.  One  other  competitor  remained, 
the  general  of  the  Syrian  army — the  closest  friend  of  Severus, 
but  now  separated  from  him  by  the  great  temptation  of  an 
Empire  in  dispute.  This  was  Niger,  from  whom  an  obsti- 
nate resistance  was  expected,  as  he  was  equally  famous  for 
his  courage  and  his  skill.  But  fortune  was  on  the  side  of 
Severus.  Niger  was  conquered  after  a  short  struggle,  and 
his  head  presented  to  the  victor.  Was  Albinus  still  to  live, 
and  approach  so  near  the  throne  as  to  have  the  rank  of  Cffisar  ? 
Assassins  were  employed  to  murder  him,  but  he  escaped  their 
assault.  The  treachery  of  Severus  brought  many  supporters 
to  his  rival.  The  Roman  armies  were  ranged  in  hostile 
camps.  Severus  again  was  fortunate,  and  Albinus,  dashing 
towards  him  to  engage  in  combat,  was  slain  before  his  eyes. 
He  watched  his  dying  agonies  for  some  time,  and  then  forced 
his  horse  to  trample  on  the  corpse.  The  Prgetorians  found 
they  had  appointed  their  master,  and  put  the  sword  into  his 
hand.  lie  used  it  without  remorse.  He  terrified  the  boldest 
wilh  his  imperturbable  stillness;  he  summoned  the  seditious 
soldiery  to  wait  on  him  at  his  camp.  They  were  to  come 
without  arms,  without  their  military  dress,  almost  like  sup- 
pliants, certainly  not  like  the  ferocious  libertines  they  had 
been  when  they  had  sold  the  Empire  at  the  highest  price. 
"Whoever  of  you  wishes  to  live,"  said  Severus,  frowning 
coldly,  "will  depart  from  tins,  and  never  come  within  thirty 
leagues  of  Komc.     Take  their  horses,"  he  ndded  lo  the  otiicr 


384  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

troops  who  had  surrounded  the  Praetorians,  "take  their 
accouternients,  and  chase  them  out  of  my  sight."  Did  the 
Senate  receive  a  milder  treatment  ?  On  sending  them  the 
head  of  Albinus,  he  had  written  to  the  Conscript  Fathers, 
alarming  tliem  with  the  most  dreadful  threats.  And  now 
the  time  of  execution  hud  come.  He  made  them  an  oration 
in  praise  of  the  proscriptions  of  Marius  and  SulUi,  and  forced 
them  to  deify  the  tyrant  Commodus,  who  had  hated  them  all 
his  life.  He  then  gave  a  signal  to  his  train,  and  the  streets 
ran  with  blood.  All  who  had  borne  high  office,  all  who  were 
of  distinguished  birth,  all  who  were  famous  for  their  wealth 
or  popular  with  the  citizens,  were  jiut  to  death. 

With  this  hideous  incarnation  of  unpitying  firmness  on 
the  throne — hopeless  of  the  future,  and  with  dangers 
accumulating  on  every  side,  the  Second  Century  came  to  an 
end,  leaving  the  amazing  contrast-  between  its  miserable 
close  and  the  long  period  of  its  prosperity  by  which  it  will 
be  remembered  in  all  succeeding  time. — White. 

The  Removal  to  Constantinople. — x\s  the  memory 
of  the  old  liberties  of  Eome  died  out,  a  nearer  approach  was 
made  to  the  ostentatious  despotisms  of  the  East.  Aurelian, 
in  270,  was  the  first  Emperor  who  encircled  his  head  with  a 
diadem;  and  Diocletian,  in  284,  formed  his  court  on  the 
model  of  the  most  gorgeous  royalties  of  Asia.  On  admission 
into  his  presence,  the  Roman  senator,  formerly  the  equal  of 
the  ruler,  prostrated  himseK  at  his  feet.  Titles  of  the  most 
unmanly  adulation  were  lavished  on  the  fortunate  slave  or 
herdsman  who  had  risen  to  supreme  power.  He  was  clothed 
in  robes  of  purple  and  violet,  and  loaded  with  an  incal- 
culable wealth  of  jewels  and  gold.  There  was  now,  therefore, 
seated  on  the  throne,  which  was  shaken  by  every  commotion, 
a  personage  assuming  more  majestic  rank,  and  affecting  far 
loftier  state  and  dignity,   than  Augustus  had  ventured  on 


E  £  A  D  1  X  G  S     IX     K  0  M  A  X     HISTORY.  285 

while  the  strength  of  the  old  Eepublic  gaxe  irresistible  force 
to  the  new  Empire,  or  than  the  Antonines  had  dreamt  of 
when  the  prosperity  of  Eome  was  apparently  at  its  height. 
But  there  was  still  some  feeling,  if  not  of  self-respect,  at 
least  of  resistance  to  pretension,  in  the  populace  and  senators 
of  the  capital.  We  are  not,  therefore,  to  feel  surprised  that 
an  orientalised  authority  sought  its  natural  seat  in  the  land 
of  ancient  despotisms,  and  that  many  of  the  Emperors  had 
cast  longing  eyes  on  the  beautiful  towns  of  Asia  Minor,  and 
even  on  the  far-off  cities  of  Mesopotamia,  as  more  congenial 
localities  for  their  barbaric  splendors.  By  a  sort  of  com- 
promise between  his  European  origin  and  Asiatic  tastes,  the 
Emperor  Constantine  transferred  the  seat  of  empire  from 
Rome  to  a  city  he  had  built  on  the  extreme  limits  of  Europe, 
and  only  divided  fi'om  Asia  by  a  narrow  sea.  To  this 
magnificent  city  Constantine  removed  the  throne  in  329,  and 
for  nearly  a  thousand  years  after  that,  while  Eome  was 
sacked  in  innumerable  invasions,  and  all  the  capitals  of 
Europe  were  successively  occupied  by  contending  armies, 
Constantinople,  safe  in  her  two  narrow  outlets,  and  rich  in 
her  command  of  the  two  continents,  continued  uncon([uered, 
and  even  unassailed. 

Rome  was  stripped,  that  Constantinople  might  be  filled. 
All  the  wealth  of  Italy  was  carried  across  the  iEgean.  The 
Roman  senator  was  invited  to  remove  with  his  establishment. 
Uc  found,  on  arriving  at  his  new  home,  that  by  a  compli- 
mentary attention  of  the  Emperor,  a  fac-simile  of  his  Eonian 
palace  had  been  prepared  for  him  on  the  Propontis.  The 
seven  hills  of  the  new  capital  responded  to  the  seven  hills  of 
the  old.  There  were  villas  for  retirement  along  the  smiling 
shores  of  tiie  Dardanelles  or  of  the  Bosporus,  as  fine  in 
climate,  and  {)erhaps  equal  in  romantic  beauty,  to  Baia;  or 
Brundusium.     There   was  a  capitol,   as  noble  a  piece  of 


286  HEADINGS     IK     EOMAN     HISTORY. 

architecture  as  the  one  they  had  left,  but  without  the 
sanctity  of  its  thousand  years  of  existence,  or  the  glory  of  its 
unnumbered  triumphs.  One  omission  was  the  subject  of 
remark  and  lamentation.  The  temples  were  nowhere  to  be 
seen.  The  images  of  the  gods  were  left  at  Rome  in  the 
solitude  of  their  deserted  shrines,  for  Constantino  had  deter- 
mined that  Constantinople  should,  from  its  very  foundation, 
be  the  residence  of  a  Christian  people.  Churches  were 
built,  and  a  priesthood  appointed. 

His  mother  Helena  made  a  journey  to  Jerusalem,  and  was 
rewarded  for  the  pious  pilgrimage  by  the  discovery  of  the 
True  Cross.  Chapels  and  altars  were  raised  upon  all  the 
places  famous  in  Christian  story  ;  relics  were  collected  from 
all  quarters,  and  we  are  early  led  to  fear  that  the  simplicity 
of  the  Gospel  was  endangered  by  its  approach  to  the  throne, 
and  that  Constantino's  object  was  rather  to  raise  and 
strengthen  a  hierarchy  of  ecclesiastical  supporters,  than  to 
give  full  scope  to  doctrines  of  truth.  But  not  the  less 
wonderful,  not  the  less  by  the  divine  appointment,  was  this 
unhoped-for  triumph  of  Christianity,  that  its  advancement 
formed  part  of  the  ambitious  scheme  of  a  worldly  and 
unprincipled  conqueror.  Eather  it  may  be  taken  as  one 
among  the  thousand  proofs  with  which  history  presents  us, 
that  the  greatest  blessings  to  mankind  are  produced 
irrespective  of  the  character  or  qualities  of  the  apparent 
author.  A  warrior  is  raised  in  the  desert  when  required  to 
be  let  loose  upon  a  worn-out  society  as  the  scourge  of  God  ; 
a  blood-stained  soldier  is  placed  on  the  throne  of  the  world 
when  the  time  has  come  for  the  earthly  predominance  of  the 
Gospel.  But  neither  is  Attila  to  be  blamed,  nor  Constantino 
to  be  ]iraised. — White. 

The  Three  Sacks  of  the  Eternal  City. —  Alaric 
marched  on  Eome.     The  Salarian  gate  was  thrown  open  at 


READINGS     IX      ROMAN     HISTORY.  287 

midnight,  probably  by  German  slaves  within  ;  and  then,  for 
five  dreadful  days  and  nights,  the  wicked  city  expiated  in 
agony  the  sins  of  centuries. 

"  And  the  kings  of  the  earth  who  had  lived  delicately 
with  her,  and  the  merchants  of  the  earth  who  were  made 
rich  by  her,  bewailed  her,  standing  afar  off  for  the  fear  of 
her  torment,  and  crying,  '  Alas !  alas,  that  great  Babylon ! 
for  in  one  hour  is  thy  judgment  come.'  " 

St.  John  passed  in  those  words  from  the  region  of  symbol 
to  that  of  literal  description.  A  great  horror  fell  upon  all 
nations,  when  the  news  came.  Rome  taken  ?  Surely  the 
end  of  all  things  was  at  hand.  The  wretched  fugitives 
poured  into  Egypt  and  Syria — especially  to  Jerusalem ;  per- 
haps witli  some  superstitious  hope  that  Christ's  tomb,  or 
even  Christ  himself,  might  save  them. 

St.  Jerome,  as  he  saw,  day  by  day,  patrician  men  and 
women  who  had  passed  their  lives  in  luxury  begging  their 
bread  around  his  hermitage  at  Bethlehem,  wrote  of  the  fall 
of  Rome  as  a  man  astonished. 

St.  Augustine,  at  Hippo,  could  only  look  on  it  as  tlie  end 
of  all  luiman  power  and  glory,  })erhaps  of  the  earth  itself. 
Babylon  the  great  had  fallen,  and  now  Christ  w'as  coming  in 
the  clouds  of  heaven  to  set  up  the  city  of  God  forever. 

Followed  by  long  trains  of  captives,  long  trains  of  wagons 
bearing  the  spoils  of  all  the  world,  Alaric  went  on  south.  He 
tried  to  cross  into  Sicily  ;  but  a  storm  wrecked  his  boats, 
and  the  Goths  were  afraid  of  the  sea.  And  after  a  Avhile  he 
died.  And  the  wild  men  made  a  great  mourning  over  him. 
Of  one  thing  they  were  resohx'd,  that  the  base  Romans  should 
not  dig  up  Alaric  out  of  his  bai-mw  and  scatter  his  bones  to 
the  winds.  So  they  ])ut  no  barrow  over  the  great  king;  but 
under  the  walls  of  Cosenza  they  turned  the  river-bed,  and  in 
that  river-bed  they  set  Alaric,  armed  and  miiilcd,  ui)i'ight 


288  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

upon  liis  horse,  with  gold,  and  jewels,  and  arms,  and,  it  may 
be,  captive  youths  and  maids,  that  he  might  cuter  into  Val- 
halla in  royal  pomp,  and  make  a  worthy  show  among  the 
heroes  in  Odin's  hall.  And  then  they  turned  back  the  river 
into  its  bed,  and  slew  the  slaves  who  had  done  the  work,  that 
no  man  might  know  where  Alaric  lies:  and  no  man  does 
know  till  this  day. 

More  dreadful  far  was  the  second  sack  than  the  first — 455 
is  its  date.  Then  it  was  that  the  statues,  whose  fragments 
are  still  found,  were  hurled  in  vain  on  the  barbarian  assail- 
ants. Not  merely  gold  and  jewels,  but  the  art-treasures  of 
Eome  were  carried  off  to  the  Vandal  fleet,  and  with  them  the 
golden  table  and  the  seven-branched  candlestick  which  Titus 
took  from  the  Temple  of  Jerusalem. 

How  had  these  things  escaped  the  Goths  forty  years  before  ? 
We  cannot  tell.  Perhaps  the  Gothic  sack,  which  only  lasted 
five  days,  was  less  complete  than  this  one,  which  went  on  for 
fourteen  days  of  unutterable  horrors.  The  plunderers  were 
not  tliis  time  sturdy,  honest  Goths ;  not  even  German  slaves, 
mad  to  revenge  themselves  on  theii"  masters ;  they  were  Moors, 
Ausurian  black  savages,  and  all  the  pirates  and  cut- throats 
of  the  Mediterranean.  Sixty  thousand  prisoners  were  carried 
off  to  Carthage.  All  the  statues  were  wrecked  on  the  voyage 
to  Africa,  and  lost  for  ever. 

And  yet  Eome  did  not  die.  She  lingered  on ;  her  Em- 
peror still  calling  himself  an  Emperor  ;  her  senate  a  senate; 
feeding  her  lazy  plebs,  as  best  she  could,  with  the  remnant  of 
those  revenues  which  former  Emperors  had  set  aside  for 
their  support — their  public  l)read,  public  pork,  public  oil, 
public  wine,  public  baths — and  leaving  them  to  gamble  and 
quarrel,  and  listen  to  the  lawyers  in  rags  and  rascality,  and 
to  rise  and  murder  ruler  after  ruler,  benefactor  after  benefac- 
tor, out  of  base  jealousy  and  fear  of  any  one  less  base  than 


READINGS     IX     R  0  M  A  X     HISTORY.  -ZSd 

themselves.  And  so  '•'  the  smoke  of  her  torment  went  up 
contiuually.'"' 

A  third  time  she  was  sacked,  by  Ricimer,  her  own  general; 
and  then  more  villains  ruled  her ;  and  more  kites  and  crows 
plundered  her.  The  last  of  them  only  need  keep  us  a  while. 
He  is  Odoacer,  the  giant.  He  came  to  Rome,  seeking  his 
fortune.  There  he  found  in  power  Orestes,  his  father's  old 
colleague  at  Attila's  court,  the  most  unprincipled  turncoat  of 
his  day;  who  had  been  the  Emperor's  man,  then  Attila's 
man,  and  would  be  anybody's  man  if  needed;  but  who  was 
now  his  own  man,  being  king-maker  for  the  time  being,  and 
father  of  the  puppet  Emperor,  Romulus  Augustulus,  a  pretty 
little  lad,  with  an  ominous  name. 

Odoacer  took  service  under  Orestes  in  the  body-guards; 
became  a  great  warrior  and  popular;  watched  his  time;  and 
when  Orestes  refused  the  mercenaries  their  demand  of  the 
third  of  the  lands  of  Italy,  he  betrayed  his  benefactor, 
promised  the  mercenaries  to  do  for  them  what  Orestes  would 
not,  and  raised  his  famous  band  of  confederates.  At  last  he 
called  himself  King  of  Nations,  burnt  Pavia,  and  murdered 
Orestes  as  a  due  reward  for  his  benefits.  Stripped  of  his 
purple,  the  last  Emperor  of  Rome  knelt  crying  at  the  feet  of 
the  German  giant,  and  begged  not  to  be  murdered  like  his 
father.  And  the  great  wild  beast's  hard  heart  smote  him, 
and  he  sent  the  poor  little  lad  away,  to  live  in  wealth  and 
peace  in  Lucullus'  villa  at  Misenum,  with  plenty  of  money, 
and  women,  and  gewgaws,  to  dream  away  his  foolish  life, 
looking  out  over  the  fair  bay  of  Naples — the  last  Emperor  of 
Rome. — KixGSLEY. 


290  READINGS      IN     R  O  M  A  X     II  I  S  T  O  K  V 


SOCIAI.,    CIYIL,    AND    EELIGIOUS 
PECULIARITIES. 

Roman  Slavery. — A  Slave  not  a  Person,  hut  a  Thing. — 
When  we  think  of  the  unlimited  scale  upon  which  the 
Romans  were  perpetually  prosecuting  war,  and  remember  the 
countless  captives  Avhose  destiny  every  battle  must  have 
placed  in  their  hands,  we  can  have  no  difficulty  in  appreciat- 
ing the  exhaustless  fertility  of  the  source  from  which  their 
slaves  were  principally  derived.  "Eome,"  said  Tacitus, 
"  trembled  in  the  presence  of  a  slave  population,  which  mul- 
tiplied day  by  day,  while  the  free  population  diminished." 
The  secretary  or  amanuensis  was  a  slave;  the  son's  tutor 
and  attendants  were  slaves  ;  the  artists,  who  in  various  ways 
ministered  to  the  great  man's  enjoyments,  were  all  slaves. 
Physicians,  actors,  musical  performers,  the  buffoon  and  the 
improvisator,  were  of  the  same  order.  So  were  the  skilled 
artisans  of  every  kind. 

How,  then,  we  may  ask,  did  the  dominant  class  act  with 
this  slumbering  volcano  beneath  their  feet?  How  did  they 
bear  themselves  towards  that  vast  multitude  in  their  streets, 
and  within  their  doors,  more  numerous,  more  energetic  and 
intelligent  than  themselves,  whose  very  presence  was  a  stand- 
ing menace  to  their  political  and  personal  existence '?  The 
law  did  not  look  upon  the  slave  even  as  a  personage  of  sub- 
ordinate and  degraded  social  position.  It  did  not  recognize 
his  claim  to  be  considered  as  a  moral  agent,  to  be  a  man  at 
all.  When  the  bystander  remonstrated  with  a  lady  in  Juve- 
nal, who  was  cruelly  torturing  her  slave  for  some  trifling  fault, 
upon  the  ground  that  it  was  shameful  so  to  treat  a  human 
being — "AhuRian  being! "she  replies,  "call  you  that  creat-. 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  291 

ure  a  human  being?  He  is  a  slave."  The  law  re-echoed, 
in  grave,  judicial  tones,  the  bitter  words  of  the  passionate 
woman.  The  slave  was  secundum  liominum  genus,  a 
"second  sort  of  human  being;  "  he  could  acquire  no  rights, 
social  or  political,  he  was  incapable  of  inheriting  pi'operty,  or 
making  a  will,  or  contracting  a  legal  marriage;  his  value  was 
estimated  like  that  of  a  brute  beast ;  his  death  or  mutihition 
punished  in  the  same  way.  In  one  word,  he  was  not  a 
person,  he  was  a  thing.  He  was  his  master's  property  to 
scourge,  to  brand,  to  chain  up,  to  torture,  to  crucify ;  nor  was 
it  seldom  that  his  master  or  his  mistress  exercised  tliis  ter- 
rible power.  There  seems  little  reason  to  disbelieve  the 
story  of  Pollio's  fish  ponds,  where  the  lampreys  fattened  upon 
the  flesh  of  slaves,  a  practice  of  which  the  humane  Augustus 
expressed  a  mild  disapproval ;  and  if  a  wealthy  proprietor  died 
under  circumstances  which  created  suspicion  of  foul  play, 
his  whole  household,  of  many  hundred  slaves,  were  instantly 
put  to  the  torture,  one  and  all. — Sheppard. 

The  Penally  for  a  Murdered  Master. — Xot  long  after, 
Pedanius  Secundus,  praefect  of  the  city,  was  murdered  by 

his    own   slave Now,   since   according   to   ancient 

custom  the  whole  family  of  slaves,  who  upon  such  occasion 
abode  under  the  same  roof,  must  be  subjected  to  capital 
punishment,  such  was  the  conflux  of  the  people,  who  were 
desirous  of  saving  so  many  innocent  lives,  that  matters 
proceeded  even  to  sedition :  in  the  senate  itself  were  some 
who  were  favorable  to  the  popular  side,  and  rejected  such 
excessive  rigor;  while  many,  on  the  contrary,  voted  against 
admitting  Jiny  innovation :  of  these  last  was  Cains  Cassius,  who, 
instead  of  barely  giving  his  vote,  reasoned  in  this  manner  : 

"Many  times  have  I  assisted,  conscript  fathers,  in  this 
august  assembly,  when  new  decrees  of  the  senate  have  been 
demanded,  contrary  to  the  laws  and  institutions  of  our  fore- 


292  READrN"GS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

fathers,  "without  o})posing  such  demands:  uot  because  I 
doubted  that  the  provisions  made  of  old  upon  all  matters 
were  the  wiser  and  more  equitable,  and  that  such  as 
were  changed  were  altered  for  the  worse ;  but  lest  I 
should  appear  to  commend  the  side  I  espoused  by  an 
immoderate  attachment  to  ancient  institutions.  At  the 
same  time  I  considered  that  whatever  weight  might  attach 
to  my  character  ought  not  to  be  destroyed  by  reiterated 
defeats,  in  order  that  it  might  remain  entire  if  at  any  time 
the  state  stood  in  need  of  my  counsels.  Such  a  conjuncture 
this  day  has  brought  forth  :  when  a  man  of  consular  rank 
has  been  murdered  in  his  own  house,  by  the  treachery  of 
his  slaves  ;  a  fraud  none  of  them  prevented,  none  of  them 
disclosed,  although  the  decree  of  the  senate  was  still  in  full 
force,  which  denounced  the  pains  of  death  to  the  whole 
household.  By  all  means  establish  impunity  by  your  decree; 
but  then,  what  security  will  any  man  derive  from  his 
dignity,  when  even  the  prajfecture  of  Rome  availed  not  him 
who  possessed  it  ?  who  will  be  protected  by  the  number  of 
his  slaves,  when  a  band  of  four  hundred  afforded  no  protec- 
tion to  Pedanius  Secimdus  ?  To  which  of  us  will  such 
domestics  administer  aid,  when,  even  with  the  terrors  of  the 
law  before  their  eyes,  they  stir  not  to  protect  us  from 
danger  ?  or  is  it,  as  some  blush  not  to  feign,  that  the 
murderer  only  took  vengeance  for  injuries  he  had  received  ? 
What  injuries?  let  us  not  mince  matters,  but  pronounce  at 
once  that  the  master  was  killed  justifiably. 

"But  are  we  to  hunt  up  arguments  in  an  affair  long  since 
weighed  and  determined  by  our  wiser  ancestors  ?  Even  if 
the  question  were  now  for  the  first  time  to  be  decided,  do 
yoii  believe  that  a  slave  could  conceive  a  purpose  of  murder- 
ing his  master  without  one  menacing  expression  escaping 
him?   without    incautiously    uttering    one    syllable   which 


READINGS     IN"     ROMAN     HISTORY.  293 

might  intimate  his  design  ?  Grant  that  he  effectually  con- 
cealed his  purpose — that  he  procured  tiie  weapon  without 
the  piivity  of  his  fellows — could  he  pass  through  the  guard 
of  slaves  at  the  chamber  door,  open  that  door,  bring  in  a 
light,  perpetrate  the  murder,  unknown  to  them  all  ?  Many 
indications  of  atrocious  guilt  precede  its  commission.  If 
our  slaves  discover  them  to  us,  we  may  live,  though  but  one 
among  many,  secure  amidst  those  who  are  torn  with  guilty 
purposes;  and  lastly,  if  we  must  perish,  we  know  that  our 
death  will  he  avenged  upon  the  guilty  persons  among  whom 
we  live.  By  our  ancestors  the  dispositions  of  slaves  were 
suspected,  even  of  such  as  were  horn  on  their  estates,  or  in 
their  own  houses,  and  had,  from  the  moment  of  their  birth, 
partaken  of  the  benevolence  of  their  masters.  But  now  that 
in  our  families  we  have  nations  of  slaves  having  rites  widely 
different  fi'om  our  own,  and  addicted  to  the  religions  of 
foreign  countries,  or  none  at  all,  it  is  impossible  to  curb 
such  a  promiscuous  rabble  without  the  terrors  of  the  law. 
But,  under  this  act,  some  who  are  innocent  must  perish  with 
the  guilty:  true,  but  out  of  a  routed  army,  when  every 
tenth  man  is  struck  with  a  club,  the  lot  falls  upon  the  brave 
as  well  as  the  coward.  Every  great  judicial  warning  involves 
somewhat  of  injustice  to  individuals,  which  is  compensated 
by  the  general  benefit." 

Though  no  particular  senator  ventured  to  combat  this 
judgment  of  Cassius,  it  was  responded  to  by  the  dissonant 
voices  of  such  as  commiserated  the  nunil)er  affected,  the 
age  of  some,  the  sex  of  others,  the  undoubted  innocence  of 
very  many  of  them :  it  was  however  carried  by  the  party 
who  adjudged  all  to  death. — Tacitus. 

Roman  Superstitions. — Evil  Omens,  and  How  they 
were  Averted. — At  liume  during  the  Avinter  many  prodigies 
either  occurred  about  the  city,  or,  as  usually  iiappens  wiien 


294  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

the  minds  of  men  are  once  inclined  to  superstition,  many 
were  reported  and  readily  believed;  among  which  it  was 
said  that  an  infant  of  good  family,  only  six  months  old,  had 
called  out  "  lo  triumphe  "  in  the  herb  market :  that  in  the 
cattle  market  an  ox  had  of  his  own  accord  ascended  to  the 
third  story,  and  that  thence,  being  frightened  by  the  noise 
oi  the  inhabitants,  had  flung  himself  down ;  that  the 
appearance  of  ships  had  been  brightly  visible  in  the  sky,  and 
that  the  temple  of  Hope  in  the  herb  market  had  been  struck 
by  lightning  ;  that  the  spear  at  Lanuvium  had  shaken  itself; 
that  a  crow  had  flown  down  into  the  temple  of  Juno  and 
alighted  on  the  very  couch;  that  in  the  territory  of 
Amiternum  figures  resembling  men  dressed  in  white  rai- 
ment had  been  seen  in  several  places  at  a  distance,  but  had 
not  come  close  to  any  one;  that  in  Picenum  it  had  rained 
stones;  that  at  Care  the  tablets  for  divination  had  been 
lessened  in  size  ;  and  that  in  Gaul  a  wolf  had  snatched  out 
the  sword  from  the  scabbard  of  a  soldier  on  guard,  and 
carried  it  off.  On  account  of  the  other  prodigies  the 
decemvirs  were  ordered  to  consult  the  books;  but  on 
account  of  its  having  rained  stones  in  Picenum  the  festival 
of  nine  days  was  proclaimedr,  and  almost  all  the  state  was 
occupied  in  expiating  the  rest,  from  time  to  time.  First  of 
all  the  city  was  purified,  and  victims  of  the  greater  kind  were 
sacrificed  to  those  gods  to  Avhom  they  were  directed  to  be 
offered;  and  a  gift  of  forty-pounds  weight  of  gold  was 
carried  to  the  temple  of  Juno  at  Lanuvium ;  and  the 
matrons  dedicated  a  brazen  statue  to  Juno  on  the  Aventine ; 
and  a  lectisternium  was  ordered  at  Caere,  where  the  tablets 
for  divination  had  diminished ;  and  a  supplication  to 
Fortune  at  Algidum;  at  Eome  also  a  lectisternium  was 
ordered  to  Youth,  and  a  supplication  at  the  temple  of 
Hercules,  first  by  individuals  named,  and  afterwards  by  the 


READINGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTORY.  295 

■whole  people  at  all  the  shrines  ;  five  greater  victims  Avere 
offered  to  Genius ;  and  Cains  Atilins  Serranus,  the  prsetor, 
was  ordered  to  make  certain  vows  if  the  republic  should 
remain  in  the  same  state  for  ten  years.  These  things,  thus 
expiated  and  vowed  according  to  the  Sibylline  books, 
relieved,  in  a  great  degree,  the  public  mind  from  super- 
stitious fears. — Liyy. 

A  Senate  Dismayed  by  the  Contumacious  Liver  of  an  Ox. — 
When  the  consuls,  Cneius  Cornelius  and  Quintus  Petillius, 
on  the  day  of  entering  into  office,  according  to  custom, 
sacrificed  each  an  ox  to  Jupiter,  the  head  of  the  liver  was 
not  found  in  the  victim  sacrificed  by  Petillius ;  which  being 
reported  to  the  senate,  he  was  ordered  to  sacrifice  oxen  until 
the  omens  should  be  favorable.  The  senate  being  then 
consulted  concerning  the  provinces,  decreed  Pisse  and 
Liguria  to  be  the  provinces  of  the  consuls.  They  ordered 
that  he  to  whose  lot  Pisse  fell,  should,  at  the  time  of  the 
elections,  come  home  to  preside  at  them;  and  that  they 
should  severally  enlist  two  new  legions  and  three  hundred 
horse ;  and  should  order  the  allies  and  Latin  confederates, 
to  furnish  ten  thousand  foot  and  six  hundred  horse  to  each. 
The  command  was  prolonged  to  Tiberius  Claudius,  until 
such  time  as  the  consul  should  arrive  in  the  province. 

While  the  senate  was  employed  in  these  affairs,  Caius 
Cornelius,  being  called  by  a  beadle,  went  out  of  the 
senate-house,  and,  after  a  short  time,  returned  with  a 
troubled  countenance,  and  told  the  conscript  fathers  tiiat 
the  liver  of  a  fat  ox,  Avhich  he  had  sacrificed,  had  melted 
away ;  that,  when  this  was  told  him  by  the  person  who 
dressed  the  victims,  he  did  not  believe  it,  and  he  liimself 
ordered  the  water  to  be  poured  out  of  the  vessel  in  which 
the  entrails  were  boih-d  ;  and  he  saw  all  entire  but  the  liver, 
which    liail    been     unaccountably    consumed.      While    the 


296  READINGS     IN     ROMAN      HISTORY. 

fathers  Avere  under  much  terror  on  account  of  this  prodigy, 
their  ukirni  was  augmented  hy  the  other  consul,  who 
informed  them  that,  on  account  of  the  first  victim  haviuo- 
wanted  tlie  head  of  the  liver,  lie  had  sacrificed  three  oxen, 
and  had  not  yet  found  favorable  omens.  The  senate  ordered 
him  to  continue  sacrificing  the  larger  victims  until  he  should 
find  favorable  omens. — Livy. 


ROMAN    JURISPRUDENCE. 

Forms   and   Ceremonies. — The  jurisprudence  of  the 
first   Romans   exhibited   the   scenes   of  a   pantomine  :   the 
words  were  adapted  to  the  gestures,  and  the  slightest  error 
or  neglect  in  the  forms  of  proceeding  was  sufficient  to  annul 
the  substance  of  the  fairest  claim.     The  communion  of  the 
marriage-life  was  denoted  by  the  necessary  elements  of  fire 
and  water;  and  the  divorced  wife  resigned  the   bunch  of 
keys,  by  the  delivery  of  which  she  had  been  invested  with 
the  goyernment  of  the  fjimily.     The  manumission  of  a  son 
or  a  slave  was  performed  by  turning  him  round  with  a  gentle 
blow  on  the  cheek  ;  a  work  was  prohibited  by  the  casting  of 
a  stone;  prescription  was  interrupted  by  the  breaking  of  a 
branch;    the  clenched  fist  was  the  symbol  of  a  pledge  or 
deposit;  the  right  hand  was  the  gift  of  fiiith  and  confidence. 
The   indenture    of    covenants    was    a  broken    straw;    and 
weights  and  scales  were  introduced  into  every  payment.     If 
a  citizen  jnirsued  any  stolen  goods  into  a  neighbor's  house, 
he  concealed  his  nakedness  with  a  linen  towel,  and  hid  his 
face  with  a  mask  or  basin,  lest  he  should  encounter  the  eyes 
of  a   virgin   or   a   matron.     In    a  civil  action,  the  plaintiff 
touched  the  ear  of  his  witness,  seized  his  reluctant  adversary 
by  the  neck  ;  and  implored,  in  solemn  lamentation,  the  aid 
of  his  fellow-citizens.     The  two  competitors  grasped  each 


KEADIXGS     IX     ROMAN     HISTOKT.  297 

other's  baud  us  if  they  stood  prepared  for  combat  before  the 
tribunal  of  the  prsEtor ;  he  commanded  them  to  produce  the 
object  of  tlie  dispute ;  they  went,  they  returned  with 
measured  steps,  and  a  clod  of  earth  was  cast  at  his  feet  to 
represent  the  field  for  which  they  contended.  This  occult 
science  of  the  words  and  actions  of  law  was  the  inheritance 
of  the  pontiffs  and  patricians.  Like  the  Chaldaean  as- 
trologers, they  announced  to  their  clients  the  days  of  busi- 
ness and  repose ;  these  important  trifles  were  interwoven 
with  the  religion  of  Nnma,  and  after  the  publication  of  the 
Twelve  Tables  the  Roman  people  was  still  enslaved  by  the 
ignorance  of  judicial  proceedings.  The  treachery  of  a 
plebeian  officer  at  length  revealed  the  profitable  mystery ;  in 
a  more  enlightened  age  the  legal  actions  were  derided  and 
observed,  and  the  same  antiquity  which  sanctified  the  prac- 
tice, obliterated  the  use  and  meaning  of  this  primitive 
language, 

Epochs  in  Jurisprudence. — The  revolution  of  almost 
one  thousand  years,  from  the  Twelve  Tables  to  the  reign  of 
Justinian,  may  be  divided  into  three  periods  almost  equal  in 
duration,  and  distinguished  from  each  other  by  the  mode  of 
instruction  and  the  character  of  the  civilians.  I.  Pride  and 
ignorance  contributed,  during  the  first  period,  to  confine 
within  narrow  limits  the  science  of  the  Roman  law  (b.  c. 
451-106).  On  the  public  days  of  market  or  assembly  the 
masters  of  the  art  were  seen  walking  in  the  forum,  ready  to 
impart  the  needful  advice  to  the  meanest  of  their  fellow- 
citizens,  from  whose  votes,  on  a  future  occasion,  they  might 
solicit  a  grateful  return.  As  their  years  and  honors 
increased,  they  seated  themselves  at  home  on  a  ciiair  or 
throne,  to  expoct,  with  patient  gravity,  the  visits  of  their 
clients,  who  at  the  (lawn  of  day,  from  the  town  and  country, 
began  to  thunder  at  tlu-ir  door.     The  youtiis  of  their  own 


298  READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

order  and  family  were  permitted  to  listen;  tlieir  children 
enjoyed  the  benefit  of  more  private  lessons,  and  the  Mucian 
race  was  long  renowned  for  the  liereditary  knowledge  of  the 
civil  law.  II.  The  second  period,  the  learned  and  splendid 
age  of  jurisprudence,  may  be  extended  from  the  birth  of 
Cicero  to  the  reign  of  Alexander  Severus  (b.  c.  160-a.  d.  235). 
A  system  was  formed,  schools  were  instituted,  books  were 
composed,  and  both  the  living  and  the  dead  became  sub- 
servient to  the  instruction  of  the  student.  Cato  the  censor 
derived  some  fame  from  his  legal  studies  and  those  of  his 
son;  but  the  perfection  of  the  science  was  ascribed  to  Servius 
Sulpicius,  the  friend  of  Tully ;  *  and  the  long  succession 
shone  with  equal  lustre  under  the  republic  and  under  the 
Caesars.  III.  In  the  third  period,  between  the  reigns  of 
Alexander  and  Justinian,  the  oracles  of  jurisprudence  were 
almost  mute  (a.  d.  235-527).  The  measure  of  curiosity  had 
been  filled  ;  the  throne  was  occupied  by  tyrants  and  bar- 
barians ;  the  active  sjiirits  were  diverted  by  religious  dis- 
putes ;  and  the  professors  of  Eome,  Constantinople,  and 
Berytus,  were  humbly  content  to  repeat  the  lessons  of  their 
more  enlightened  predecessors. 

The  Parent  and  the  Child. — The  law  of  nature  instructs 
most  animals  to  cherish  and  educate  their  infant  progeny. 
The  law  of  reason  inculcates  upon  the  human  species  the 
returns  of  filial  piety.  But  the  exclusive,  absolute,  and  per- 
petual dominion  of  the  father  over  his  children  is  peculiar  to 
the  Eoman  jurisprudence,  and  seems  to  be  coeval  with  the 
foundation  of  the  city.  The  paternal  power  was  instituted 
or  confirmed  by  Eomulus  himself,  and  after  the  practice 
of  three  centuries,  it  was  inscribed  on  the  fourth  table  of 
the  Decemvirs.  In  the  forum,  the  senate,  or  the  camp,  the 
adult  son  of  a  Eoman  citizen  enjoyed  the  public  and  private 

*  Cicero,  whose  full  name  was  Marcus  Tullius  Cicero. 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  299 

rights  of  a  person :  in  his  father's  house  he  was  a  mere  thing  ; 
confounded  by  the  laws  with  the  moveables,  the  cattle,  and 
the  slaves,  whom  the  capricious  master  might  alienate  or 
destroy  without  being  responsible  to  any  earthly  tribunal. 
The  hand  which  bestowed  the  daily  sustenance  might  resume 
the  Toluntary  gift,  and  whatever  was  acquired  by  the  labor  or 
fortune  of  the  son  was  immediately  lost  in  the  property  of 
the  father.  At  the  call  of  indigence  or  avai-ice,  the  master 
of  a  family  could  dispose  of  his  children  or  his  slaves.  But 
the  condition  of  the  slave  was  far  more  advantageous,  since 
he  regained,  by  the  first  manumission,  his  alienated  freedom  : 
the  son  was  again  restored  to  his  unnatural  father;  he  might 
be  condemned  to  ser^-itude  a  second  and  a  third  time,  and  it 
was  not  till  after  the  third  sale  and  deliverance  that  he  was 
enfranchised  from  the  domestic  power  which  had  been  so 
repeatedly  abused.  The  majesty  of  a  parent  was  armed  with 
the  power  of  life  and  death  ;  and  the  examples  of  such  bloody 
executions,  which  were  sometimes  praised  and  never  punished, 
may  be  traced  in  the  annals  of  Eome,  beyond  the  times  of 
Pompey  and  Augustus.  Neither  age,  nor  rank,  nor  the  con- 
sular office,  nor  the  honors  of  a  triumph,  could  exempt  the 
most  illustrious  citizen  from  the  bonds  of  lilial  subjection. 
His  own  descendants  were  included  in  the  family  of  their 
common  ancestor. 

The  Tutor  and  the  Pupil. — Tlie  lelation  of  guardian 
and  ward,  or,  in  Roman  words,  of  iutor  and  pupil,  whicli 
covers  bo  many  titles  of  the  Institutes  and  Pandects,  is  of  a 
very  simple  and  uniform  nature.  The  person  and  property 
of  an  orphan  must  always  be  trusted  to  tlic  custody  of  some 
discreet  friend.  Tlie  office  of  the  tutor  was  to  complete  the 
defective  legal  personality  of  the  ward.  All  formal  words 
essential  to  a  legal  transaction  had  to  be  pronounced  by  the 
ward  himself,  and  then  the  tutor,  by  his  assent,  added  the 


300  READINGS     IN      ROMAN     HISTORY. 

animus,  the  intention,  of  which  the  child  was  not  capable. 
The  age  of  puberty  had  been  rashly  fixed  by  the  civilians  at 
fourteen ;  but,  as  the  faculties  of  the  mind  ripen  more  slowly 
than  those  of  the  body,  a  curator  was  interposed  to  guard 
tlie  fortunes  of  a  Roman  youth  from  his  own  inexperience 
and  headstrong  passions ;  and  the  minor  was  compelled  by 
the  laws  to  solicit  the  same  protection  to  give  validity  to  his 
acts  till  he  accomplished  the  full  period  of  25  years.  Women 
were  condemned  to  the  perpetual  tutelage  of  parents,  hus- 
bands, or  guardians ;  a  sex  created  to  please  and  obey  was 
never  supposed  to  have  attained  the  age  of  reason  and 
experience. 

Thefts  and  Insults. — A  Roman  pursued  and  recovered 
his  stolen  goods  by  a  civil  action  of  theft;  they  might  pass 
through  a  succession  of  pure  and  innocent  hands,  but  noth- 
ing less  than  a  prescription  of  thirty  years  could  extinguish 
his  original  claim.  They  were  restored  by  the  sentence  of 
the  Praetor,  and  the  injury  was  compensated  by  double,  or 
three-fold,  or  even  quadru]ile  damages,  as  the  deed  had  been 
perpetrated  by  secret  fraud  or  open  rapine,  as  the  robber  had 
been  surprised  in  the  fact,  or  detected  by  a  subsequent 
research.  The  rude  jurisprudence  of  the  Decemvirs  had 
confounded  all  hasty  insults  which  did  not  amount  to  the 
fracture  of  a  limb,  by  condemning  the  aggressor  to  the  com- 
mon penalty  of  25  asses.  But  the  same  denomination  of 
money  was  reduced,  in  three  centuries,  from  a  pound  to  the 
weight  of  half  an  ounce ;  and  the  insolence  of  a  wealthy 
Roman  indulged  himself  in  the  cheap  amusement  of  breaking 
and  satisfying  the  law  of  the  Twelve  Tables. 

Crimes  and  Punishments. — In  the  punishment  of 
crimes,  the  laws  of  the  Twelve  Tables,  like  the  statutes  of 
Draco,  are  written  in  characters  of  blood ;  and  the  forfeit  of 
an  eye  for  an  eye,  a  tooth  for  a  tooth,  a  limb  for  a  limb,  is 


READINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY.  301 

rigorously  exacted,  unless  the  offender  can  redeem  his  pardon 
by  a  fine  of  3u0  i)ounds  of  copper.  Nine  crimes  were 
adjudged  worthy  of  death.  1.  Any  act  of  treason  against 
the  state,  or  of  correspondence  with  the  public  enemy. 
The  mode  of  execution  w^as  painful  and  ignominious :  the 
head  of  the  degenerate  Roman  was  shrouded  in  a  veil,  his 
hands  were  tied  behind  his  bach,  and,  after  he  had  been 
scourged  by  the  lictor,  he  was  suspended  in  the  midst  of  the 
forum  on  a  cross,  or  inauspicious  tree.  2.  Nocturnal  meet- 
ings in  the  city,  whatever  might  be  the  pretence — of 
pleasure,  or  religion,  or  the  public  good.  3.  The  murder  of 
a  citizen ;  for  which  the  common  feelings  of  mankind 
demand  the  blood  of  the  murderer.  The  parricide  was  cast 
into  the  river  or  the  sea,  enclosed  in  a  sack  ;  and  a  cock,  a 
\iper,  a  dog,  and  a  monkey,  were  successively  added  as  the 
most  suitable  companions.  4.  The  malice  of  an  iticendiary. 
After  the  previous  ceremony  of  whipping,  he  himself  was 
delivered  to  the  flames;  and  in  this  example  our  reason  is 
tempted  to  applaud  the  justice  of  retaliation.  5.  Judicial 
perjury.  The  corrupt  or  malicious  witness  "was  thrown 
headlong  from  the  Tarpeian  rock  to  expiate  his  falsehood. 
C.  T/ie  cornqHion  of  a  judge,  who  accepted  bribes  to  pro- 
nounce an  iniquitous  sentence.  7.  Libels  i\\\<l  satires,  whose 
rude  strains  sometimes  disturbed  the  peace  of  an  illiterate 
city.  The  author  was  beaten  with  clubs,  a  worthy  chastise- 
ment ;  but  it  is  not  certain  that  he  Avas  left  to  expire  under 
the  blows  of  the  executi<jner.  8.  The  nocturnal  mischief  of 
damaging  or  destroying  a  neighhor\  corn.  'Y\\c  criminal 
was  suspended  as  a  grateful  victim  to  '^Jcrcs.  0.  Magical 
incantations,  whieli  \\\u\  iiowci-.  in  llie  opinion  of  the 
Latian  shepherds,  to  exhaust  tiie  strength  of  an  enemy,  to 
extinguish  liis  life,  and  to  remove  from  their  seats  his  deep- 
rooted  plantations. 


302  EEADINGS     IN     ROMAN     HISTORY. 

Voluntary  Il2:ile  and  Death. — A  Roman  accused  of 
aaj  ca[)ital  crime  might  prevent  the  sentence  of  the  law  by 
voluntary  exile  or  death.  Till  his  guilt  bad  been  legally 
proved,  his  innocence  was  presumed  and  his  person  was  free; 
till  the  votes  of  the  last  century  had  been  counted  and 
declared,  he  might  peaceably  secede  to  any  of  the  allied 
cities  of  Italy,  or  Greece,  or  Asia.  His  fame  and  fortunes 
were  preserved,  at  least  to  his  children,  by  this  civil  death  ; 
and  he  might  still  be  happy  if  a  mind  accustomed  to  the 
tumult  of  Rome  could  support  the  silence  of  Rhodes  or 
Athens.  A  bolder  effort  was  required  to  escape  from  the 
tyranny  of  the  Caesars;  but  this  effort  was  rendered  familiar 
by  the  maxims  of  the  Stoics,  the  example  of  the  bravest 
Romans,  and  the  legal  encouragement  of  suicide.  The 
bodies  of  condemned  criminals  were  exposed  to  public 
ignominy,  and  their  children,  a  more  serious  evil,  were 
reduced  to  poverty  by  the  confiscation  of  their  fortunes. 
But,  if  the  victims  of  Tiberius  and  K^ero  anticipated  the 
decree  of  the  prince  or  senate,  their  courage  was  recom- 
pensed by  the  applause  of  the  i^ublic,  the  decent  honors  of 
burial,  and  the  validity  of  their  testaments.  The  exquisite 
avarice  and  cruelty  of  Domitian  appears  to  have  deprived 
the  unfortunate  of  this  last  consolation,  and  it  was  still 
denied  even  by  the  clemency  of  the  Antonines.  A  voluntary 
death,  which,  in  the  case  of  a  capital  offense,  intervened 
between  the  accusation  and  the  sentence,  was  admitted  as  a 
confession  of  guilt,  and  the  spoils  of  the  deceased  were  for- 
feited to  the  treasury. — [Culled  from  Gibbon's  famous 
Chapter  XLIV.,  on  Romau  Jurisj)rudence.] 


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THE   NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY. 

LIBRARY  AND  MISCELLANEOUS 
PUBLICATIONS. 


TEACHERS'    WORKING    LIBRARY. 
Object  Lessons.     Welch. 

Tliis  is  a  eonijilete  exjiosition  of  the  popular  inodern  system  of  "object-teaching,'' 
for  teachers  of  primary  classes. 

Theory  and  Practice  of  Teaching.     Page. 

This  volume  has,  without  iloulit,  been  I'ead  liy  two  hundred  thousand  teachers,  and 
its  popularity  remains  undiminished,  large  editions  being  exhausted  yearly.  It  was 
the  pioneer,  as  it  is  now  the  patriarch,  of  professional  works  for  teachers. 

The  Graded  School.     Wells. 

The  proper  way  to  organize  graded  schools  is  here  illustrated.  The  author  has  availed 
himself  of  the  best  eleirients  of  the  several  systems  prevalent  in  Boston,  New  York, 
Philadelphia,  Cincinnati,  St.  Louis,  and  other  cities. 

The  Normal.     Holbrook. 

Carries  a  working  si^hool  on  its  visit  to  teachers,  showing  the  most  approved  methods 
of  teaching  all  the  common  branches,  including  the  technicalities,  explanations,  demon- 
strations, and  definitions  introductory  and  peculiar  to  each  branch. 

School  Management.     Holbrook. 

Treating  of  the  tcarher's  (lualificatinus  :  how  to  overcome  difficulties  in  self  and 
others;  oi'ganization  ;  disciiiline  ;  methods  of  inciting  diligence  and  order;  strategy 
in  management  ;  object-teaching. 

The  Teachers'  Institute.     Fowle. 

This  is  a  volume  of  suggestions  inspired  by  the  author's  experience  at  institutes,  in 
the  instruction  of  young  teachers.  A  thousand  points  of  interest  to  this  class  are  most 
satisfactorily  dealt  with. 

Schools  and  Schoolmasters.     Dickens. 

Apiiro|iriate  selections  from  the  writings  of  the  great  novelist. 

The  Metric  System.    Davies. 

Considered  witli  relereiice  to  its  general  introduction,  and  embracing  the  views  of 
John  Quincy  Adams  and  fSir  John  Ilcrscliel. 

The  Student ;  The  Educator.     Phelps.     2  vols. 
The  Discipline  of  Life.     Phelps. 

The  authoress  of  these  works  is  one  of  the  nm.st  distinguished  writers  on  education, 
and  they  cannot  fail  to  jirove  a  valuable  addition  to  the  School  and  Teachers'  Libraries, 
being  iri  a  higli  degree;  lioth  interesting  and  instructive. 

Law  of  Public  Schools.     Burke. 

By  Finley  Burke,  Counsellor-at-Law.  A  new  volume  in  "Barnes's  Teachers'  Library 
Series."     l:imo,  cloth. 

"Mr.  Burke  has  given  us  the  latest 
expositions  of  the  law  on  this  highly  im- 
portant subject.  I  shall  cordially  com- 
mend his  treatise."  —  Theodore  Dwight, 
LL.D. 

From  the  HoN.  Joseph  M.  Beck,   Judge  of 
Biipremi'  Court,  Iowa. 

"  I  have  examined  with  considerable 
?are  the  manuscript  of  '  A  Treatise  on  the 


Law  of  Public  Schools."  by  Finley  Burk«, 
Esq.,  of  Council  Bluffs.  In  my  opinion, 
the  work  will  be  of  gi-eat  value  to  school 
teachers  and  schoor  officers,  and  to  law- 
yers. The  subjects  treated  of  are  thought- 
fully considered  and  thoroughly  examined, 
and  correctly  and  systematically  arranged. 
The  style  is  perspicuous.  The  legal  doc- 
trines of  the  work,  so  far  as  I  have  beeD 


^^ 


THE    NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY. 


MISCELLANEOUS    PUBLICATIONS  —  Continued. 


able  to  consider  them,  are  sound.  I  have 
examined  quite  a  number  of  the  authori- 
ties cited  ;  they  sustain  the  rules  an- 
nounced in  the  text.  Mr.  Burke  is  an  able 
and  industrious  member  of  the  bar  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  this  State,  and  has  a 
high  standing  in  the  profession  of  the 
law." 

"  I  fully  concur  in  the  opinion  of  Judge 
Beck,  above  expressed." — John  F.  Dil- 
LO.v.     New  York,  May,  1880. 

Sioux  City,  Iowa,  May,  1S80. 
I  have  examined  the  manuscript  of 
Finley  Uarke,  Esq. ,  and  lind  a  full  citation 
of  all  the  c.i.ses  and  decisions  pertaining  to 
the  school  law,  occurring  in  the  courts  of 
tlje  United  States.     This  vuhime  contains 


valuable  and  important  information  con- 
cerning school  law,  which  has  never  before 
been  accessible  to  either  teaclier  or  school 
officer.  A.  Armstrong, 

Supt.  Schools,  Sioux  City,  Iowa. 

Des  Moines,  May  15,  ISSO. 
The  examination  of  "  A  Treatise  on  the 
Law  of  Public  Schools,"  prepared  by  Fin- 
ley  Burke,  Esq. ,  of  Council  Blufts,  has 
given  me  much  pleasure.  So  far  as  J 
know,  there  is  no  work  of  similar  charac- 
ter now  in  existence.  I  think  such  a  work 
will  be  exceedingly  useful  to  lawyers, 
school  officers,  and  teachers,  and  1  hope 
that  it  may  find  its  way  into  their  hands. 

G.    W.    VON   COELLV, 

Siij)t.  Public  Inst,  fur  Iowa. 


Teachers'  Handbook.     Phelps. 

By  William  F.  Phelps,  Principal  of  Minnesota  State  Normal  School.  Embracing  the 
objects,  history,  organization,  and  management  of  teachers'  institutes,  followed  by 
methods  of  teaching,  in  detail,  for  all  the  fundamental  branches.  Every  young  teacher, 
every  practical  teacher,  every  experienced  teacher  even,  needs  this  book. 

This  is  the  key-note  of  the  present  excel- 


From  (he  New  York  Tribune. 

"  The  discipline  of  the  school  should 
prepare  the  child  for  the  discipline  of  life. 
Tli«  country  schoolmaster,  accordingly, 
holds  a  ])iisition  of  vital  interest  to  the 
destiny  of  tlie  reimblic,  and  should  neg- 
lect no  means  for  the  wise  and  efficiciit 
discharge    of    his    significant   functions. 


lent  volume.  In  view  of  the  supreme 
importance  of  the  teacher's  calling,  Mr. 
Plielps  has  presented  an  elaborate  system 
of  instruction  in  the  elements  of  learning, 
with  a  complete  detail  of  methods  and 
processes,  iUustrated  with  an  abundance 
of  practical  examples  and  enforced  by 
judicious  councils." 

Topical  Course  of  Study.     Stone. 

This  volume  is  a  compilation  from  the  courses  of  study  of  our  most  successful  public 
schools,  and  the  best  tliought  of  leading  educators.  The  pupil  is  enabled  to  make  full 
use  of  any  and  all  text-liooks  bearing  on  the  given  tojiics,  and  is  incited  to  use  all  other 
infiirmation  within  his  reach. 

American  Education.     Mansfield. 

A  treatise  on  tlje  princijiles  and  elements  of  education,  as  practised  in  this  oountry, 
with  ideas  tow.irds  distinctive  rejiublican  and  Cliristian  education. 

American  Institutions.     De  Tocqueville. 

A  valiialilc;  imlcx  to  the  gi-niiis  cif  our  Ouvcniiin'iit. 

Universal  Education.     Mayhew. 

The  sulij'-ct  is  apprii;irhc(l  witli  the  clcur,  l%ccu  iicrccption  of  one  who  has  observed 
its  necessity,  and  realized  its  feasibility  and  cxjiedieiK'y  alike.  The  redeeming  and 
elevating  power  of  improved  common  schools  constitutes  the  inspiration  of  the  volume. 

Oral  Training  Lessons.     Barnard. 

The  c,lij.-(t  of  this  v.ry  usiful  wnik  is  t"  luniish  material  for  instructors  to  impart 
orally  to  their  i-1;isms.  in  Ih.iikIu'S  nut  usu.illy  t.iii;;ht,  in  iummon  schcols,  embracing  a'' 
de]iartniciits  of  n.tturil  scii-nrc  and  much  general  knowledge. 

Lectures  on  Natural  History.     Chadbourne. 

Affording  many  thcrni's  fur  oral  instruction  in  this  interestiu({  sciauce,  especially  in 
ICboola  where  it  is  not  pursued  us  a  class  exercise. 

67 


THE   NATIONAL   SERIES   OF   STANDARD   MISCELLANY. 
MISCELLANEOUS   PUBLICATIONS  — Co7i/ittMe<i. 

Outlines  of  Mathematical  Science.     Davies. 

A  Uiuiuml  suggesting  the  best  methods  of  presenting  mathematical  instruction  on  the 
part  of  tlie  teaulier,  witli  tliat  compreliensive  view  of  the  whole  which  is  necessary  to 
the  intelligent  treatment  of  a  part,  in  science. 

Nature  and  Utility  of  Mathematics.     Davies. 

An  elaborate  and  lucid  ex]iosition  of  the  jinnciples  which  lie  at  the  foundation  of 
pure  mathematics,  with  a  highly  ingenious  application  of  their  results  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  essential  idea  of  the  diflerent  branches  of  the  science. 

Mathematical  Dictionary.     Davies  and  Peck. 

This  cyclopaidia  of  mathiwiiatical  science  defines,  with  completeness,  precision,  and 
accuracy,  every  technical  tt  rm  ;  thus  constituting  a  popular  treatise  on  each  branch, 
and  a  general  view  of  the  whole  subject. 

The  Popular  Educator.     Barnes. 

In  seven  volumes,  containing  iuteresting  and  prohtable  educational  miscellany. 

Liberal  Education  of  W^omen.     Orton. 

Treats  of  "  the  demand  and  the  method  ;  "  being  a  compilation  of  the  best  and  most 
advanced  thought  on  this  subject,  by  the  leading  writers  and  educators  in  England  and 
America.     Edited  by  a  professor  in  Vassar  College. 

Education  Abroad.     Northrop. 

A  thorough  discussion  of  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  sending  American 
children  to  Europe  to  be  educated  ;  also,  papers  on  legal  prevention  of  illiteracy,  study, 
and  health,  labor  as  an  educator,  and  other  kindred  subjects. 

The  Teacher  and  the  Parent.     Northend. 

A  treatise  upon  common-school  education,  designed  to  lead  teachers  to  view  their 
calling  in  its  true  light,  and  to  stiimdate  them  to  fidelity. 

The  Teachers'  Assistant.     Northend. 

A  natural  continuation  of  the  author's  previous  work,  more  directly  calculated  for 
daily  use  in  the  administration  of  school  discipline  and  instruction. 

School  Government.     Jewell. 

Full  of  advanced  ideas  on  the  subject  which  its  title  indicates.  The  criticisms  upon 
current  theories  of  punishment  and  schenjes  of  administration  have  excited  general 
attention  and  comment. 

Grammatical  Diagrams.     Jewell. 

The  diagram  system  of  teaching  grammar  exjdained,  defended,  and  improved.  The 
curious  in  literature,  the  searcher  for  truth,  those  interested  in  new  inventions,  as  well 
as  the  disciples  of  Professor  Clark,  who  would  see  their  fa\'orite  theory  fairly  treated, 
all  want  this  book.  There  are  many  who  would  like  to  be  made  familiar  with  this 
system  before  risking  its  use  in  a  class.     The  ojiportunity  is  here  afforded. 

The  Complete  Examiner.     Stone. 

Consists  of  a  series  of  questions  on  every  English  branch  of  school  and  academic 
instruction,  witli  reference  to  a  given  page  or  article  of  leading  text-books  where  the 
answer  may  tie  found  in  full.  Prepared  to  aid  teachers  in  securing  certificates,  pupils 
in  preparing  for  promotion,  and  teachers  in  selecting  review  questions. 

How  Not  to  Teach.     Griffin. 

This  book  meets  a  want  universally  felt  among  young  teachers  who  have  their  expe- 
rience in  teaching  to  learn.  It  undertakes  to  point  out  the  many  natural  mistakes  into 
which  teachers,  unconsciously  or  otherwise,  fall,  and  warns  the  reader  against  dangers 
that  beset  the  path  of  every  conscientious  teacher.  It  tells  tlie  reader,  also,  the  proper 
and  acceptable  way  to  teach,  illustrating  the  author's  ideas  by  some  practice-lessons 
in  arithmetic  (after  Griibe).  gg 


THE    NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY, 

MISCELLANEOUS  PUBLICATIONS  —  Coiitinutd. 

School  Amusements.     Root. 

To  assist  teachers  in  making  the  school  interesting,  witli  hints  upon  the  manage- 
ment of  the  school-room.  Rules  for  military  and  gymnastic  exercises  are  included. 
lUustRited  by  diagrams. 

Institute  Lectures.     Bates. 

These  lectures,  originally  delivered  before  institutes,  are  based  upon  various  topics  in 
the  departments  of  mental  and  moral  culture.  The  volume  is  calculated  to  prepare 
tlie  will,  awaken  the  inquiry,  and  stimulate  the  thought  of  tlie  zealous  teacher. 

Method  of  Teachers'  Institutes.     Bates. 

Sets  forth  the  best  method  of  conducting  institutes,  with  a  detailed  account  of  the 
object,  organization,  plan  of  instruction,  and  true  theory  of  education  on  which  such 
instruction  should  be  based. 

History  and  Progress  of  Education. 

The  systems  of  eituratiou  prevailing  in  all  nations  and  ages,  the  gradual  advance  to 
the  present  time,  and  the  liearing  of  tlie  past  upon  the  present,  in  this  regard,  are 
worthj'  of  the  careful  investigation  of  all  concerned  in  education. 

Higher  Education.     Atlas  Series. 

A  collection  of  valuable  essays.  Contemts.  International  Communication  by  Lan- 
guage, by  Philip  Gilbert  Hamerton  ;  Reform  in  Higher  Education  ;  Upper  Schools,  by 
President  James  McCosh  ;  Study  of  Dreek  and  Latin  Classics,  by  Prof.  Charles 
Elliott  ;  The  University  System  in  Italy,  by  Prof  Angelo  de  Gubernatis,  of  the 
University  of  Florence  ;  Universal  Education,  by  Ray  Palmer ;  Industrial  Art  Educa- 
tion, by  Eaton  S.  Drone. 


LIBRARY     OF     LITERATURE. 

Milton's  Paradise  Lost.      (r>oy(rs  Illustrated  Edition.) 
Young's  Night  Thoughts.  do. 

Cowper's  Task,  Table  Talk,  &c.        do. 
Thomson's  Seasons.  do. 

PoUok's  Course  of  Time.  do. 

These  works,  models  of  the  best  and  purest  literature,  are  beautifully  illustrated,  and 
notes  exi)lain  all  doubtful  meanings. 

Lord  Bacon's  Essays.      (Boyd's  Edition.) 

Another  grind  English  classic,  affording  the  highest  exampki  of  purity  in  language 
and  style. 

The  Iliad  of  Homer.     (Translated  by  Pope.) 

Those  who  are  unable  to  read  this  greatest  of  ancient  writers  in  the  original  shouhl 
not  fail  tf)  avail  themselves  of  this  standard  metrical  version. 

Pope's  Essay  on  Man. 

This  is  a  model  of  jmre  classical  English,  which  should  be  read,  also,  by  every  teacher 
and  scholar  for  tin;  sound  thought  it  contains. 

Improvement  of  the  Mind.     Isaac  Watts. 

No  nient.d  Jiliilosophv  w.is  ever  writtiii  which  is  so  ci>in)irehensive  and  practically 
useful  to  the  unje.irned  as  w,ll  as  learned  rcadcras  this  well-known  book  of  Watts. 

Milton's  Political  Works.      Cleveland. 

This  is  the  very  l)est  edition  of  tlie  gre.at  poet.  It  includes  a  life  of  the  author, 
notes,  dis.sertatioiiM  on  each  ]>ocni,  a  faultless  text,  and  is  Die  o;i2j/ edition  of  Milton 
with  a  couipleie  verbal  index. 

69 


THE   NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY, 

MISCELLANEOUS   PUBLICATIONS  —  Co7i«mM«d. 

Compendium  of  English  Literature.     Cleveland. 
English  Literature  of  XlXth  Century.     Cleveland. 
Compendium  of  American  Literature.     Cleveland. 

Nearly  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  volumes  of  Professor  Cleveland's  inimitable 
roiupendiunis  have  been  sold.  Taken  together  they  present  a  coniplete  view  of  litera- 
tare.  To  the  man  who  can  afford  but  a  few  books  these  will  supply  the  place  of  an 
extensive  library.  From  commendations  of  tlie  very  highest  authorities  the  following 
extracts  will  give  some  idea  of  the  enthusiasm  with  which  the  works  are  regarded  by 
scholars  :  — 

"With  the  Bible  and  your  volumes  one  might  leave  libraries  without  very  painful 
regret. "  "  The  work  cannot  be  found  from  which  in  the  same  limits  so  much  interesting 
and  valuable  information  may  be  obtained."  "  Good  taste,  fine  scholarship,  familiar 
acquaintance  with  literature,  unwearied  industry,  tact  acquired  by  practice,  an  interest 
iu  the  itulture  of  the  young,  and  regard  for  truth,  purity,  philanthropy,  and  religion 
are  united  in  Mr.  Cleveland."  "  A  judgment  clear  and  impartial,  a  taste  at  once  deli- 
cate and  severe."  "The  biographies  are  just  and  discriminating."  "An  admirable 
bird's-eye  view."  "Acquaints  the  reader  with  the  characteristic  method,  tone,  and 
quality  of  each  writer."  "Succinct,  carefully  written,  and  wouderfully  comprehensive 
in  detail,"  &c.,  &c. 


Old  New  Y(ikk  Plate. 
[From  Mrs.  Martha  J.  Lamb's  "History  of  the  City  of  New  York."] 

70 


THE    NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY. 

MISCELLANEOUS   PUBLICATIONS  -  Continued. 
LIBRARY      OF      HISTORY. 
Ancient  and  Mediaeval  Republics.      Mann. 

A  review  of  their  iiistitutimis,  aiiil  of  the  causes  of  tlieir  decline  and  fall.  &♦ 
Henry  Mann.     Svo.     aS-1  j.a-es.     ch.th. 

Outlines  of  General  History.     Oilman. 

The  number  of  facts  which  the  author  has  compressed  into  these  outline  sketches  is 
really  surprising ;  the  chapters  on  the  Middle  Ages  and  feudalism  afford  striking  ex- 
amples of  his  power  of  succinct  but  comprehensive  statement.  In  his  choice  of 
representative  periods  and  events  in  the  histories  of  nations  he  shows  very  sound  judg- 
ment, and  his  characterization  of  conspicuous  historical  figures  is  accurate  and 
impartial. 

Great  Events  of  History.     Collier. 

Tliis  celibrated  wiirk,  edited  for  American  reader?  by  I'rof.  O.  R.  'Willis,  gives,  in  a 
series  of  pictures,  a  pleasantly  rca<lable  and  easily  remembered  view  of  the  Christian 
era.  Each  chaj)ter  is  headed  by  its  central  jioint  of  interest  to  afford  association  for  tlie 
mind.  Delineations  <if  life  and  manners  at  different  periods  are  interwoven.  A  geo- 
^rapliical  appendi.x  of  great  value  is  added. 

History  of  England.     Lancaster. 

An  arrangement  of  the  essential  facts  of  English  history  in  the  briefest  manner 
consistent  with  clearness.     With  a  fine  map. 

A  Critical  History  of  the  Civil  War.     Mahan. 

By  Asa  Mahan,  I.L.I).,  author  of  "  Intellectual  IMiilosoiOiy,''  "  Kleiiiei.ts  nf  Logic," 
&c. "  First  iiresident  of  Uberlin  College,  Ohio.  With  an  introductory  letter  by  Lieut- 
Gen.  .M.  W.  Smith  of  the  British  army.     Svo.     400  pages.     Cloth. 

The  plan  of  this  work  is  to  present,  not  the  causes  and  details  of  facts  which  led  to 
the  war,  but  tlie  condui-t  ami  management  of  the  war  on  the  part  of  those  concerned. 
It  is  a  matter  of  present  and  future  importance  to  Americans  to  know  not  only  how  the 
war  was  conducted,  but  also  how  it  might  have  been  more  successfully  carried  on 
The  author  has  made  the  science  of  war  a  subject  of  careful  and  protracted  study,  and 
his  views  are  pronounced  and  .scientific.  He  takes  strong  ground,  writes  with  vigor, 
and  the  interest  of  the  reader  is  fully  sustained  from  the  beginning  to  the  close  of  the 
book.  His  c(i!i(lusioiis  have  already  iiasse<l  in1'>  history,  and  tliis  work  will  be  regarded 
as  one  of  the  most  imi">rtaMl  contri'liutions  tn  the  literature  of  the  subject. 

Europe  under  Napoleon  First.     Alison. 

A  history  of  Europe  from  17S9  to  1815.     By  Archibald   Alison.     Abridged  by  Edward 
Gould.     1  vol.     8vo,  with  a]ii>endix,  questions,  and  mai>s.     500  pages. 


It  seems  to  me  an  excellent  abridg 
ment.  .  .  .  Written  in  clear  and  <diaste 
style,  presenting  the  narrative  in  exact 
form  for  the  general  reader.  .  .  .  "— Judc.k 
.Jo.sErn  Storv. 


S 

"One  of  the  best  abriflgments  lever 
saw.  The  material  facts  are  all  retained, 
and  Mr.  Gmild  has  displayeil  great  inrlus- 
try  and  skill  in  preserving  the  substance 
of  BO  great  a  history."  —  Chancellor 
.Fames  Kent. 

History  of  Rome.     Ricord. 

An  cr.tert.iihin^' n.irrative  f.,r  (li<-  yi.iui-      Illustrated.      Embracing  successively.  The 
Kiii-s  The  M.-publie,  Th-  Kiiipir.- 

History  of  the  Ancient  Hebrews.     Mills. 

The  record  of  "Gnil's  piM.ple  "  froMi  the  call   of  Abiaham    to  Ihit   destruction  of  .Teru 
Halem  ;  gathered  from  sources  saen-d  and  profane. 

The  Mexican  War.     Mansfield. 

A  hist/iry  of  its  ori;:in,  .and  adelailed  accmint  oi   its  victories  ;  with  olllcial  desimtches, 
Uie  treaty  of  peaco,  and  valuable  tublts.     Illustrated. 

72 


THE   NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY, 

MISCELLANEOUS   PUBLICATIONS  —  C'oH<J7i«ed. 

Early  History  of  Michigan.     Sheldon. 

A  work  of  value  and  deeji  interest  to  the  people  of  the  West.  Compiled  uudfrr  the 
supervision  of  Hon.  Lewis  Cass.     Portraits. 

History  of  Texas.     Baker. 

A  ]iitliy  and  interesting  I'esuuie.  Copiously  illustrated.  The  State  constitution  and 
extracts  from  the  speeches  and  writings  of  eminent  Texans  are  appended. 

Magazine  of  American  History. 

8  Volumes.  Illustiuted.  A  collection  of  valuable  data  relating  to  American 
History.  ' 

Points  of  History. 

For  schools  and  colleges.  By  John  Lord,  LL.D.,  author  of  "Old  Roman  World," 
"  Modern  History,"  &c. 

Barnes's  Popular  History  of  the  United  States.    1  vol. 

This  sujierbly  illustrated  work  is  by  the  author  of  "Barnes's  Brief  Histories  "  (for 
schools).  The  leading  idea  is  to  make  American  Xuatwy  popuhtr  for  the  masses,  and 
especially  with  tlie  young.  The  style  is  therefore  life-like  and  vivid,  carrying  the 
reader  along  by  the  sweep  of  the  story  as  in  a  novel,  so  that  when  he  begins  an  account 
of  an  important  event  he  cannot  very  well  lay  down  the  book  until  he  finishes.  It  is 
complete  from  the  earliest  times  to  date. 

"  ]3arnes's  Popular  History  of  the  United  States  "  was  undertaken  at  the  close  of  tlie 
first  hundred  years  of  American  Independence.  The  author  proposed  to  give  to  the 
whole  people  of  the  United  States  and  the  world  a  thoroughly  impartial  history  of 
America,  from  the  mound-builders  to  the  jiresent  time.  As  such  it  was  necessary  to 
steer  free  from  whatever  in  recent  history  would  arouse  sectional  animosity  or  party 
bitterness.  He  determined  to  meet  all  questions  of  burning  moment  in  the  .iudicial 
rather  than  controversial  siiirit,  and  while  giving  to  every  event  its  due  importance,  he 
would  seek  to  avoid  controversy  by  the  gentle  word  '"that  turueth  away  wrath."  The 
work  is  now  finished  down  to  President  Arthur's  administration.  In  it  the  truth  of 
American  history  is  impartially  given  in  true  historic  form,  without  fear  or  favor.  It  is 
a  work  that  all  sections  of  the  country  can  read  and  enjoy.  Although  the  author  is  a 
Northern  man  and  soldier,  his  work  is  popular  and  widely  used  as  a  text-book  East, 
West,  North,  and  South.  An  Alabama  teacher  lately  wrote  as  follows  :  "  We  are  using 
your  history  and  like  it,  though  it  does  n't  favor  us  rebels. "  And  so  it  is  liked  throughout 
the  country,  becau.se  it  does  n't  favor  any  side  at  the  expense  of  truth  and  justice. 
Instead  of  being  spread  out  in  many  volunies,  more  or  less  didactic,  statistical,  or  dry, 
the  book  is  complete  in  one  royal  8vo  volume  of  850  pages,  with  14  full-page  steel 
engravings  and  320  text  illustrations  on  wood,  engraved  by  eminent  artists.  It  is  fully 
up  to  the  times  and  includes  an  account  of  President  Gardeld's  brief  administration 
and  tragic  death. 

Mrs.  Martha  J.  Lamb's  History  of  New  York  City. 
2  vols.,  cloth. 

This  is  a  comjilete  survey  of  the  history  o  New  York  from  early  settlement  to  the 
present  time.  It  opens  with  a  brief  outliiu;  of  the  condition  of  the  Old  World  prior  to 
the  settlement  of  the  New,  and  proceeds  to  give  a  careful  analysis  of  the  two  great 
Dutch  Commercial  Corporations  to  which  New  York  owes  its  origin.  It  sketches  the 
rise  and  growth  of  the  little  colony  cm  Manhattan  Island  ;  describes  the  Indian  wars 
with  which  it  was  afflicted  ;  gives  cnjur  and  life  to  its  Dutch  rulers  ;  paints  its  subju- 
gation liy  the  English,  its  after  vicissitudes,  the  Revolution  of  l(i89  ;  in  short,  it  leads 
the  reader  through  one  continuous  chain  of  events  down  to  the  American  Revolution. 
Then,  gathering  up  the  threads,  the  author  gives  an  artistic  and  comprehensive  account 
of  the  progress  of  the  city,  in  extent,  education,  culture,  literature,  art,  and  jiolitical 
and  commercial  importance  duringthe  last  century.  Pnimiiient  personsare  introduced 
in  all  the  ditlerent  periods,  with  choice  bits  of  family  liistory,  ami  glimpses  of  social 
life.    The  work  contains  maps  of  the  city  in  the  ditlerent  decades,  and  several  rare 

73 


THE    NATIONAL    SERIES    OF    STANDARD    MISCELLANY, 

MISCELLANEOUS    PUBLICATIONS  — Coftti/iwed. 

portraits  from  ori.;xinaI  paintings,  which  have  never  before  been  engraved.     The  iUus- 
tmiioiis,  about  JiiO  in  number,  are  all  of  an  interesting  and  highly  artistic  character. 

"Widely  welcomed  both  for  its  abun-  "  There  is  warmth  and  color  and  life  in 

dant  stores  of  iiiforniation  and  the  attrac-        every  passage."  —  New  York  Sun. 
tioiis     of    the    narrative." — ycic     Voi-k  "The  work    has   been   done   faithfully 

Tribune.  |    and  jiicturesquely. " — ■  The  Nation,. 

Carrington's  Battles  of  the  Revolution. 

.V  careful  descriptiDU  and  analysis  of  every  engagement  of  the  War  for  Independence, 
with  topograiihical  cliarts  prepared  from  pei-sonal  surveys  by  the  author,  a  veteran 
ottici-r  of  the  Liiitcd  Stales  army,  and  Professor  of  Military  Science  in  Wabash  College. 

Baker's  Texas  Scrap-Book. 

Coiiiini.siug  tlic  liistory,  biograpliy,  literature,  and  miscellany  of  Texas  and  its  people. 
A  valuable  collection  of  material,  anecdotical  and  statistical,  which  is  not  to  be  found 
in  any  other  form.    The  work  is  handsomely  illustrated. 


DICTIONARIES  AND   ENCYCLOP/EDIAS. 
Home  Cyclopaedia  of  Literature  and  Fine  Arts. 

1im1i-x  to  terms  •.■iiiplnjed  in  belles-lettres,  philoso]iliy,  tlieoloiry,  law,  mythology, 
jiaintuig.  music,  siiilptuie,  architecture,  and  all  kindred  arts,  iiy  Geo.  Ripley  and 
Clias.  A.  Dana. 

The  Rhyming  Dictionary.     Walker. 

A  si-rviceabln  manual  tw  i-i.iuiiiiscTS,  iM'iMg  a  ciiniiili-te  index  of  allowable  rhymes. 

Dictionary  of  Synonymes ;  or,  The  Topical  Lexicon. 
Williams. 

Tenns  of  the  English  language  cfagsi^etZ  &j/ *«?>;ec<s  and  arranged  according  to  their 
affinities  of  mianing,  with  etymologies,  definitions,  and  illustrations.  A  very  enter- 
taining and  inslruitive  work. 

Hawaiian  Dictionary. 

Mathematical  Dictionary.     Davies  and  Peck. 

.\  tli'.r'mgli  ciinipendium  uf  tin'  science,  witli  illustrations  and  detinitions. 

Kwong's  Dictionary. 

.\  dictionary  of  Kn-lisli  jilirases.  With  ilUistrative  sentences.  With  collections  of 
Englisli  and  Chinese  j)roverbs,  translations  of  Latin  and  French  phrases,  historical 
sketch  of  the  Chinese  Empire,  a  chronoh)gical  list  of  the  Cliine.se  dynasties,  brief 
biograjihical  sketches  of  Confucius  and  of  Jesus,  and  complete  index.  Iiy  Kwong  Ki 
Chill,  late  member  of  the  Chinese  Educationil  Mission  in  the  United  States,  and  for- 
merly principal  teacher  of  English  in  the  Government  School  at  Shanghai,  China.  900 
pages,  8vo,  cloth. 

"  From  the  New  York  Nation. 

"  It  will  amaze  the  sand-lot  gentry  to  be 
informed  that  this  remarkable  work  will 
supplement  our  English  dictionaries  even 


From  the  Ilart/ord  Courant. 
"The  volume  .sliows  great  industry  and 
apjirehcnsion  of  our  language,  and  is  one 
of  the   most  curious  and   interesting  of 
linguistic  works." 


for  native  Americans.'' 


BARNES'S    LIBRARY    OF    BIOGRAPHY. 
The  Life  of  President  Garfield, 

From  Itirlh  In  Pn-idcncv,   l.v  .\I;i.joi   .1    M.   liuiidy,   editor  New  York  "Evening  Mail 
Express,"     From  .Minlor'to  i';il.eroii,  l>y  Col.  A.  F.  Uockwell.     Oration  and  Eulogy,  by 
lion,  .lames  G.  HIaine. 
ThiM  life  of  our  martyred  President,  by  Major  Buiidy,  Mr.  Blaine,  and  Colonel  Uockwell. 

74 


THE   NATIONAL    SERIES   OF   STANDARD   MISCELLANY. 

MISCELLANEOUS    PUBLICATIONS  —  Continued. 

who  was  with  the  President  before  and  after  the  assassination,  is  the  most  correct  and 
anthentic.  Major  Bundy  visited  General  Garfield  at  Mentor,  by  invitation,  and  received 
all  the  facts  relating  to  his  life  to  the  day  of  his  nomination,  from  tlie  General's  lips. 
This  history  of  his  life  was  completed  by  Colonel  A.  F.  Rockwell  and  Hon.  James  G. 
Blaine. 

The  Autobiography  of  Rev.  Chas.  G.  Finney, 

Tlie  revivalist  preacher  and  lirst  president  of  Uberlin  College.  With  steel  portrait. 
Edited  by  Pi-es.  J.  H.  Fairchild,  of  Oberlin.  Dr.  Finney  was  tlie  greatest  and  most 
snccessfiil  evangelist  of  modern  times.  His  labors  extended  not  only  thronghout  a 
large  territory  in  the  United  States,  but  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  and  he  prodnced 
a  most  powerful  impression.  This  memoir  describes  the  scenes  he  passed  through  in 
the  most  vivid  language,  and  covers  the  entire  period  of  his  life,  froua  the  time  of  his 
conversion  to  the  close  of  his  career. 

Memoirs  of  P.  P.  Bliss. 

With  steel  jiortrait  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bliss  and  two  children.  By  Major  D.  AV.  Whittle. 
With  a  complete  collection  of  Mr.  Bliss's  tunes  and  hymns,  many  of  which  are  here 
published  for  the  first  time.  Containing  also  contributions  by  Mr.  Moody,  Mr.  Sankey, 
Dr.  Goodwin,  and  others. 

The  Life  and  Speeches  of  Henry  Clay. 

New  edition.  Complete  in  one  volume.  Conipileil  and  edited  by  Daniel  Mallory. 
1,3:^.3  pages,  8vo,  cloth,  steel  plates,  portraits,  and  other  illustrations. 

This  is  tlie  best  life  of  Henry  Clay.  It  contains  a  full  sketch  of  his  life  and  all  his 
speeches,  —  his  most  important  speeches  in  full  and  his  less  important  ones  in  part.  It 
also  contains  an  epitome  of  the  Compromise  Measures,  the  Obituary  Addresses  and 
Eulogies  by  Senat(n's  Underwood,  Cass,  Hunter,  Hall,  Clemens,  Cooper,  Jones,  of  Iowa, 
and  Brooke  ;  and  Representatives  Breckenridge,  Evviiig,  Caskie,  Chandler,  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, Bayley,  Venable,  Haven,  Brooks,  of  New  York,  Faulkner,  of  Virginia,  Parker, 
Gentry,  Bowie,  and  Walsh.  Also  the  funeral  sermon,  by  the  Rev.  CM.  Butler,  Chap- 
lain of  the  Senate,  and  various  imi)c)rtant  correspondence  not  elsewhere  published. 

Henry  Clay's  Last  Years.     Colton. 
Garibaldi's  Autobiography. 

From  his  birtli  tn  liis  retirement  at  Cajirera  ;  including  the  most  eventful  period  of 
his  life.  Transl.ued  ti(ini  nKuiiiseript  by  Theodore  Dwight,  author  of  "A  Tour  in 
Kaly,"  ami  "Tlie  Roman  Repulilic."     Eniljellislied  with  jiortrait  engraved  on  steel. 

The  Life  and  Services  of  Lieut.-Gen.  Winfield  Scott, 

Iiieludiiig  his  lirilliaiit  achievements  in  tlie  War  of  1S12  and  in  the  Mexican  War.  and 
tlie  part  jilayed  liy  him  at  tlie  opening  of  the  Civil  War  of  1862.  By  Edward  D.  Mans- 
field. LL.D.     I'Jmo.  cloth,  illustrated.     5.iJ0  pages. 

Lives  of  the  Signers.     Dwight. 

Tlie  memory  (<i  the  noble  men  who  declared  our  country  free,  at  the  peril  of  their  own 
"lives,  fortunes,  .ind  s.ieivd  honor,"  should  be  emljalmed  in  every  American's  heart. 

Life  of  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds.     Cunningham. 

A  candid,  trutliful,  and  apjireciative  memoir  of  the  great  painter,  with  a  compilation 
of  his  discourses.  The  volume  is  a  text-book  for  artists,  as  well  as  those  who  would 
acquire  the  rudiments  of  art.     With  a  portrait. 

Biography  of  Ezra  Cornell, 

lAmnder  of  CoiiieU  University.  A  filial  tribute.  By  his  son,  Hon.  A.  B.  Cornell, 
late  Governor  of  the  State  of  New  York. 

Frmii  the  Nation.  I   '^"d  there  was  nothing  to  be  apologized 

i.i.      A    -D   /-.        11          4.1      u-          1  I   for  or  glossed  over." 

'  Mr.  A.  B.  Cornell,  as  the  biographer  „          , 

of  his  father,  has  had  opportunities  such  ^''O'"-  "'«  ^^"^  ^ofk  Times. 

as  are  given  to  few  sons  who  undertake  "  Ezra  Cornell,  the  man,  was  a  person 

similar  tasks.     The  material  of  a  singu-  more  to  be  esteemed  and  remembered  than 

larly  noble,  useful  life  was   before  him,  '    Ezra  Cornell,  the  millionaire." 

75 


WE   NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY. 

MISCELLANEOUS   TUBLICATIONS  —  Continued. 

Prison  Life. 

Interesting  Biographies  of  celebrated  prisoners  and  martyrs,  designed  especially  for 
the  instruction  and  cultivation  of  youth. 

Men  of  Mark. 

Bryant,  Longfellow.  Poe,  Charles  Tennyson  Turner,  Macaulay,  Freeman,  Curtius, 
George  Tii-kiior,  Sumner,  John  Stuart  Mill.  By  Edwin  P.  Whipple,  Edward  A.  Free- 
man, and  others.     2~i)  pa;;es,  Svo,  paiier  covers. 

The  Hero  of  Cowpens. 

riiis  book  presents  a  complete  history  of  the  lives  of  heroic  Daniel  Morgan  and  of 
Benedict  Arnold.  These  Revolutionary  characters  are  viewed  in  varied  lights,  and  the 
author  has  produced  a  most  <a]itivating  historical  sketch,  as  interesting  as  a  romance. 

Autobiography  of  Havilah  Mowry,  Jr. 

A  City  uiissmnaiy. 


BARNES'S      LIBRARY     OF     TRAVEL. 
Silliman's  Gallop  among  American  Scenery ; 

(Jr,  .Sketches  of  American  Scenes  and  Mihtary  Adventure.     By  Augustus  E.  Sillimaa. 
33S  pages,  Svo,  illustrated. 

It  is  a  most  agreeable  volume,  and  we  commend  it  to  the  lovers  of  the  "  si)arkling" 
Style  of  lit^'rature.  It  carries  the  reader  through  and  past  many  of  the  spots,  North 
jnd  South,  made  memorable  by  events  of  the  Revolution  and  the  War  of  1812. 

Texas  :  the  Coming  Empire.     McDaniel  and  Taylor. 

Narrativi^  of  a  Iwo-tliousau'l-milr  trip  (ju  horscliark  througli  the  Luuc  Star  State  ; 
with  lively  descriiitioiis  ot'  people,  sieueiy,  and  rcsniurcs. 

Life  in  the  Sandwich  Islands.     Cheever. 

The  "heart  of  tlie  I'aiihi-,  as  it  was  and  is,"  shows  most  vividly  the  contrast  between 
tlie  dejith  of  degradation  and  liarbarism  and  the  liglit  ami  liberty  of  civiliaition,  so 
rapi<Uy  realized  in  these  islands  under  the  humanizing  iutlueuce  of  the  Christian 
religion.     Illustrated. 

The  Republic  of  Liberia.     Stockwell. 

This  voluui;'  tii-ats  of  tlie  geography,  ilimati-,  snil.  .im.I  piuilm-tions  of  this  interesting 
country  on  tlie  coast  of  Africa,  witli  a  history  of  its  early  settlement.  Our  colored 
citizens  especially,  from  whom  the  founders  of  the  new  State  went  forth,  should  read 
Mr.  Stockwell's  account  of  it.  It  is  so  arranged  as  to  be  available  for  a  school  reader, 
ani  in  colored  schc  'Is  is  peculiarly  appropriate  as  an  instrument  of  edui'ation  for  the 
young.     Liberia  is  likely  to  bear  an  important  pait  in  tlie  future  of  their  race. 

Discoveries     among    the     Ruins     of     Nineveh    and 
Babylon. 

With  JO  illu^tralinns  and  a  r..MipN.le  index.  IJy  -Vusten  il.  Layard,  M.  1'.  Aljridgcd 
••cliilon.     -jj')  pagis,  PJmo,  cloth. 

Monasteries  of  the  East. 

Kmbnwring  descriptions  from  pei.sonal  observation  of  Egypt  in  18.'!S;  the  Natron 
Lakes,  the  Onvent  of  the  I'ulli-y,  the  Ituin''  1  Monastery  at  Thebes,  the  Wliite  Mona.s- 
ti-ry,  the  Islaml  of  I'liiloc,  Kc,  .JiMiisalem,  the  Monastery  oC  St.  Sabba,  and  the  Monas- 
teries of  .Met'sra,  Saint  .Vili'is      |{y  Robert  Ourzon,  Jr.    400  pages,  12mo,  cloth. 

A  Run  through  Europe. 

By  Hon.  Erastu.H  (,'.  IJcnedict,  late  Chancellor  of  the  University  of  New  York.     A  i-ji.: 
months*  tour  through  the  galleries  and  c^apitaU  of  Europe,  by  a  most  intelligent  observe. 
in  the  year  1»U7.    12mo,  <.'loth. 

70 


THE    NATIONAL    SERIES    OF   STANDARD    MISCELLANY. 

MISCELLANEOUS    PUBLICATIONS  —  Continued. 

Eighteen  Months  on  a  Greenland  Whaler. 

By  .loseph  I'.  FaulUncr.au  "  ex-assistaut  wliale-eatclier  in  an  American  schooner,"  an'l 
nutlior  of  otlier  recullt'ctinns  of  tlie  sea.     318  pages,  icinio,  cloth. 

The  Polar  Regions  ; 

Or,  Tlie  First  Searcli  After  Sir.Jolin  Franklin's  Expedition.  By  Lieut.  Sherard  Osborn, 
commanding  H.  SI.  S.  Pioneer  (the  first  steam  vessel  that  ever  penetrated  the  Northern 
sea).     212  pages,  12rao,  cloth. 

St.  Petersburg.     Jermann. 

Americans  are  less  familiar  with  the  history  and  -social  customs  of  the  Russian  peo- 
ple than  those  of  any  otlier  modern  civilized  nation.  Opportunities  such  as  this  booli 
atfords  are  not,  tlieiefore,  to  be  neglected. 

Thirteen  Months   in  the   Confederate  Army. 

The  author,  a  Northern  man  conscripted  into  the  Confederate  service,  and  rising  from 
the  ranks  by  soldierly  conduct  to  positions  of  responsibility,  had  remarkable  oppor- 
tunities for  the  acquisition  of  facts  respecting  the  conduct  of  the  Southern  armies,  and 
the  policy  and  deeds  of  their  leaders.  He  partici].ated  In  many  engagements,  and  his 
book  is  one  of  the  most  exciting  narratives  of  adventure  ever  published.  Mr.  Steven- 
son takes  no  ground  as  a  partisan,  but  views  the  whole  subject  as  with  the  eye  of  a 
neutral,  only  interested  iu  subserving  the  ends  of  history  by  the  contribution  of 
impartial  facts.     Illustrated. 

The  Isthmus  of  Tehauntepec.     Anderson. 

Svo.  elotli.  A  history  of  the  Istlmuis  from  earliest  times  to  the  present,  \ri'Ji  an 
acourtt  of  failroad  enterprises  and  valuable  maps  and  charts. 


BARNES'S    RELIGIOUS    LIBRARY. 
Ray  Palmer's  Poetical  Works. 

An  exquisite  edition  of  the  complete  hymns  and  other  poeticai  writings  of  the 
most  eminent  of  American  sacred  poets,  author  of  "  My  Faith  Looks  up  to  Thee." 

Formation  of  Religious  Opinions.     Palmer. 

Hints  for  the  benefit  of  young  penjile  who  have  found  themselves  disturbed  by  inward 
questiiMiings  or  doubts  concerning  tlie  Christian  faith. 

Nine  Lectures  on  Preaching.     Dale. 

By  Rev.  R.  W.  Dale,  of  England.  Delivered  at  Yale  College.  Contents  :  Perils  of  Young 
Preachers  ;  The  Intellect  in  Relation  to  Preaching  ;  Reading  ;  Preparation  of  Sermons  ; 
Extemporaneous  Preaching  ;  Evangelistic  Preaching  ;  Pastoral  Preaching  ;  Conduct, 
of  Public  Worship. 

Dale  on  the  Atonement. 

The  theory  and  fact  of  Christ's  atonement  profoundly  considered. 

The  Service  of  Song.     Stacy. 

A  treatise  on  singing,  in  public  and  private  devotion.  Its  history,  office,  and  impor- 
tance considered. 

*'  Remember  Me."     Palmer. 

Preparation  for  the  Holy  Communion. 

Bible  Lands  Illustrated. 

A  pictorial  hand-liook  of  the  antiquities  and  modem  life  of  all  the  sacred  countries. 
By  Henry  C.  Fish,  D.D.  With  six  liundred  engravings  and  maps,  one  thousand  eluci- 
dated Scripture  texts,  and  two  thousand  indexed  subjects.     Svo,  cloth,  900  pages. 

77 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


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